


Herobrine's Return (Corruption of Minecraftia)

by AvecPardon



Series: Corruption of Minecraftia [1]
Category: Dream Team - Fandom
Genre: Author's Avatar Assists, Blood and Injury, Dadza, Derealization, Dream is just not having an easy time of this, Dream-Centric, Emotional Manipulation, Gaslighting, Gen, Hostage Situations, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault (in the past), Mentioned Clay | Dream (Video Blogging RPF), Mentions of Non-Consensual Body Modification, Mind Manipulation, Mind/Mood Altering Substances, Non-Consensual Touching, Panic Attacks, Poor Dream, Realistic Minecraft, Technoblade and Wilbur Soot and TommyInnit are Siblings, Temporary Character Death, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, but still recognized as a game, hand-wavy computer code/script, it's a glitchy hot mess, mentions of torture, minecraft dungeons, multiple times cuz Herobrine is cruel like that, partially beta read, unhealthy perception of relationships, unhealthy thinking
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:34:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 34
Words: 125,087
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28098498
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvecPardon/pseuds/AvecPardon
Summary: Several years after The Convergence, the Herobrine Virus makes its move to revive itself in the world of Minecraftia. Without access to His original host, a new one is selected to be Herobrine's new body: a Speed Class Avatar who goes by the name Dream.Ch. 34 Summary: Herobrine plans His attack on the xp farming city of Grindstone while Sapnap and George sort out what steps to take in order to get close to Him and restore Dream's Core File. Meanwhile, the young Avatars TommyInnit, Tubbo_, and Ranboo pay a visit to the city for levels and are swept up in the flames of war...50 words serve as prompts to create a set of one-shots that take place within the Corruption of Minecraftia Arc. Tags may change/be added, timeline may not be coherent. Let's just see how this shit goes. Updates are sporadic since I wanna run with my inspiration before seasonal depression dropkicks me into a slump.
Relationships: mentioned/implied Dream/GeorgeNotFound, mentioned/implied SkythekidRS/Deadlox
Series: Corruption of Minecraftia [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2174448
Comments: 62
Kudos: 55





	1. 1. Talisman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The song was a warning, but no one listened. 'Though He was removed, He will rise again.' One night in Minecraftia, Herobrine begins to rise once more...

1\. Talisman

Sky Capital gleamed with dozens of redstone lamps and campfire streetlamps, a dome of light that pushed back the darkness and kept hostile mobs from spawning within its walls. Without those hostile mobs, in the past, the Eyes of Herobrine could not look into the city to seek out SkythekidRS. The Herobrine Cultists laid sieges on the city during the event known as The Convergence, but could not break through the walls. The sentries of Sky Army lined the top, armed with keen eyes and plenty of arrows. They looked outward, watching for dangers that could approach from outside as the Capital now guarded the artifacts of Sky and Deadlox left behind.

None imagined anything out of the ordinary would happen within the city walls.

Footsteps tapped out in rapid staccato, uneven and off tempo. Three Avatars moved swiftly through the dim alleyways, arms woven together to support a fourth that stumbled and swayed among them. Flickers of pale blue energy danced over them sporadically, causing small hitches of breath from pain and effort to suppress them.

"Are we there yet?"

"No, you muffinhead; do you see any gold around us?!"

"Shh, it's just past this street! Keep it together!"

Glowstone decor shone overhead as the group stepped briefly out of the shadows to cross a cobblestone street and duck into the next alley. Just beyond the end of the path lay the glimmering golden construct of Sky Tower Alpha, the resting place of the Anti-Viral Artifacts.

Long ago, Minecraftia barely managed to survive The Convergence; Herobrine's physical form was destroyed, but His essence, His soul, persisted within the sentient world that lay hidden beneath the veneer of the server worlds of Minecraft. SkythekidRS and Deadlox, the two Anti-Virals responsible for destroying the combined Herobrine and Squid Viruses, made a pact with the sentient awareness of Minecraftia. The immunity level of the world needed to be restored and the last of the corrupted Avatars needed to be purged of their infection. To aid in this, Minecraftia rewrote the laws governing death for the Living Avatars; their soul-links and memories would be preserved after death as long as the Avatar had sufficient levels and experience points to pay as compensation.

The Anti-Viral Avatars, now immune to the Viral code that had plagued them for so long, gave their signature artifacts the last of their Viral code to allow them to generate immunization and placed them in the heart of the Capital so their power could radiate outward via the gold network. Finally, to reduce the incentive for Cultists to do more damage to the unstable world, Sky and Deadlox self-exiled themselves to the server worlds, wearing duplicates of their artifacts so none would be the wiser.

The Sky Amulet and Deadlox Headset remained in the tower, the most important artifacts in Minecraftia.

"There it is!"

"Go, go, go!"

"We'll stay here and look after Dream. Hurry, George!"

A small Avatar wearing dark lens glasses, even during the middle of the night, scampered up the steps to the tower, eyes darting all around quickly to take note of any guards. None; Sky Tower Alpha was unguarded despite its importance to the city and the world. Hubris on the part of the Recruits, perhaps. The Avatar breathed a sigh of relief at realizing this and ran inside, sprinting for the water elevator encased in glass in the center of a spiral of gold blocks.

He took in a gulp of air as he dashed into the stream, rocketing up on the bubbles forming in the water. Soaked, he kicked himself out of the stream onto the highest level of the tower, rolling to a stop in front of a pair of pedestals formed of still more gold. The Avatar gasped and coughed, pushing hair up out of his face as he stared at the two artifacts floating over the pedestals; an amulet made of a purple gem encased in gold and hung on white cord, and a black headset with green accents, both shimmering in violet as though enchanted.

He hesitated for only a moment before darting out both hands to grab the artifacts and pull them from their pedestals.

Observer blocks blinked at the sudden absence of the artifacts and note blocks suddenly sounded around the room. The Avatar jerked back in surprise, eyes widening behind his glasses as Iron Golems began waddling into the room from hidden alcoves, targeting him. With a yelp, he turned and ran back for the elevator, skidding to a stop as several blocks of sand fell from above and blocked the entrance to the glass tube. He bit his lip nervously; breaking the sand would take time, and the golems would reach him first.

Flicking the artifacts to his hotbar, the Avatar cycled to a bucket of water and ran for one of the numerous windows that circled the room. If archers were trained on them, they most likely would be pointing their weapons upward, expecting escape by elytra. The Avatar dove downwards towards the ground and almost certain death. At that height, without enchanted armor or potions, he would be killed on impact.

But that's what the bucket of water was for.

At the last moment, the Avatar splashed the water out onto the ground and landed in it, unharmed and cushioned from the impact. He swiped the source block back into the bucket and bolted for the alley again, flicking his hands to grab the artifacts once more.

"Dude! Nice MLG water!"

"C'mon, c'mon, use 'em quick!"

"Sapnap, Bad, how is he?"

Huddled in the alley, three Avatars looked at one another in worry. One was dressed a bit like an athlete, jogging pants and shoes and a flame-emblazoned shirt, a white headband holding up black hair and trailing a length of ribbon behind him. Another looked like a demon, pitch black skin and hair, round white eyes, and dressed in an ornate black hood and robe with red accents, diamond sword strapped to his back. The third, the one who stole the artifacts, looked as though he only modified the default set of clothes every Avatar started with, brightening the blue and adding a small white square to his shirt, a pair of white-framed glasses with dark lenses on his face.

The reason for their worry lay in the fourth Avatar slumped against the wall of the shop they hid behind, convulsing now and then as the diamond-blue energy darted over him, changing a formerly gray hoodie into the ragged blues of Herobrine's shirt, black jeans torn and shoes already converted from what had been brown loafers into scuffed black ones. Dirty blonde hair hung over his face, hiding his eyes from view. At least, until one opened just a crack, and shone pure white in the dark.

The Eyes of Herobrine.

"He's being taken over by the Virus," the demonic Avatar whispered in a hushed and fearful voice. "George, Sapnap, are you guys sure this'll work?" He shrank into himself, wincing at another convulsion. The Avatar with the glasses held out the amulet and headset.

"Everyone knows these things are what gives everyone in Minecraftia and the land inoculations against the Herobrine Virus," he replied, a British accent softening his voice further, "'Specially after Herobrine got that Squid code to make Himself stronger. If we're gonna save Dream, these are the best items to use."

The athlete reached out and plucked up the headset, squinting at its shimmer doubtfully. "And you're sure we're not gonna get in trouble for this, right, George?" he asked as the third Avatar perked back up and looked between them in agitation.

"You muffinheads said this wasn't gonna get us in trouble and now there's a chance we might be in trouble?!" he cried out in alarm and pulled his hood further down over his head. "We're all muffined..."

George fiddled with the cord of the amulet to open its clasp and looked up at the athletic Avatar examining the headset. "Bad, we're gonna be fine, relax. Ready, Sapnap?" he asked and shifted in place at the nod he got in response. "Okay, on one, you put the headset on him, and I'll clasp this around his neck. Should clear out Herobrine and Dream'll be good as new. Three.."

Sapnap readied himself, holding the headset up.

"Two.."

BadBoyHalo, or Bad as his friends would often call him, reached out a hand and gestured to bring up Dream's status window, gazing worriedly at the heart meter that trembled on the screen. A single heart remained full, red and bright, the rest of the meter was empty and at the far end, where the tenth heart was marked, was an ominous purple color filling it in and lashing out with tendrils to the heart next to it. A Viral Infection, and one more potent than ever known, as this wasn't just a fragment of the Herobrine Virus corrupting their friend, but the soul of the Viral Avatar Himself.

"One!"

George and Sapnap lunged at the blonde Avatar. The headset came down over his head and gleamed brighter against the eerie blue energy dancing over him. Sapnap yanked his hands clear, eyes wide as George clipped the amulet around Dream's neck to complete the set. The reaction was immediate; the talismans erupted into a blast of light that swallowed up the screaming Avatar and nearly blinded the three friends who held up their hands in an attempt to block the flash.

When it faded, they blinked the spots from their eyes and hurried to check on their friend, Bad bringing up the status window again. "Hey, I think it worked! His hearts are full again!" he exclaimed happily, though his voice held a confused tone. "They're just all glowing kind of pink. Is that gonna stay?"

"Dream? Dream!" George called out in alarm, shaking the blonde's shoulder gently. The Avatar's appearance had changed dramatically, the grey and black replaced with earthy shades of green and brown, a pocketed baldric strapped across his chest and sturdy boots replacing the scuffed loafers. Brown gloves stretched from his palms to his elbows, leaving his fingers uncovered. An odd bracer of some sort was strapped to his left forearm.

However, what really stood out and caught Sapnap's attention first was the lime green cloak and hood wrapped around Dream's shoulders, held by a clasp that was a simple white circle bearing a face, two wide-set black spots for eyes and a curved line for a smile. It shimmered violet, as though enchanted. The second thing Sapnap spotted was that same smiley face on a mask that covered Dream's face completely, held in place by a black strap that wrapped around his head and locked into place with golden bands. The gold also gleamed violet.

"What the hell?" Sapnap whispered before jerking his head up to hear the sounds of doors slamming nearby. "Crap, we'd better get out of here before someone spots us!"

"What? But we gotta return the artifacts!" Bad protested even as he jumped to his feet.

"We'll have to do it later! Sapnap, you're a Power Class Avatar; carry Dream!" George told him, waving his arms wildly.

In no time at all, three Avatars whisked away a fourth into the night, scrambling away from Sky Tower Alpha while the shine of the stolen talismans lit the way for them.


	2. 2. Hero

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Perspective of the Herobrine Cultists, with the introduction of two original characters; Stacy, the scout who shot Dream, and Kothra, her superior who runs the spy network. They expected Herobrine to show up right away but things don't go to plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are two kinds of Cultists; the Infected, and the Anarchic. Infected Cultists are like zombies, mindless in servitude and only capable of following orders. Anarchics are Avatars who chose of their own free will to follow Herobrine and bring destruction to the world for whatever reason they have, so they keep their minds and personalities intact. Stacy and Kothra are among the Anarchics.

2\. Hero

The doors to the Nether Castle were blown open as an Avatar wearing a pink flower crown, striped shirt, shorts, and a dark red hooded cloak sauntered through, her arms flung up into the air. "Praise me!" she declared with a wide smile, amber eyes bright and sparkling, "I **did** it! I got Herobrine a new body!"

Of the several Cultists loitering around the foyer of the castle, two other girls perked up and squealed happily, running over to join the newcomer. "Ohmigosh, _really_?!" they exclaimed, bouncing around her in excitement. "Who is it?! Are they cute? Single? Do we need to expand His Lordship's quarters? Are they allergic to gluten?"

The girl stopped walking, holding up a hand for calm as the other Cultists finally took interest and turned their attention to her. That seemed to be what she was waiting for, as her grin turned impish and she clapped her hands together in pleased excitement.

"I got _Dream_!" she revealed, cheeks flush with joy as the girls around her squealed and hugged each other, jumping in place as their own red cloaks flapped around from the motions. Several other Cultists suddenly flocked their way, eager to hear news about the potential return of their Lord and Master.

"Ohmigosh! Herobrine for DreamSMP!" 

"Aw, you couldn't get Technoblade?"

"Did you get Dream before or after his rebrand? I heard from my Player that he changed skins and names from the old PVP stuff! Did that convert here already?"

Flapping her hands dismissively, the Avatar laughed off the questions that were fired after her. "We'll totally find out once Lord Herobrine shows back up. Praise me for the hero I am; my crossbow skills finally got put to good use!" she declared and winked with a smile at the Cultists surrounding her.

The group waited, scurrying around to prepare the castle for Herobrine's triumphant return as a way of passing time. An hour passed, then another. The flower-crowned girl flicked her hand to the clock in her hotbar and frowned at it, lips pursed into a pout as she watched the little sun rise. Another Cultist approached her, hands on his hips and an unimpressed expression on his face.

"Well, Stacy? It's been a whole night since you shot that arrow. Lord Herobrine's source code isn't in the holding chamber, all of our arrows that were forged from it are gone, and He hasn't returned," the male Avatar told her and raised an eyebrow. "I hope your target didn't go and kill himself rather than surrender his body to our Master."

"Noooo?" Stacy stretched out the word as she flicked the clock away and pressed her fingertips together, "Dream totally wouldn't just up and **die** , like, permanently or anything." The other Cultist just stared at her in silence and she threw her hands up. "Oh, for crying out loud, I don't **know**! This never happened when He took over Sky's body! He came straight here and we got in on that whole 'destroy Minecraftia and kill everyone' plan before my Player's pizza got delivered! Maybe Dream got lost on the way here. Compasses don't fucking work in the Nether! At least I did **my** job; get off my back, Kothra!"

The Cultist huffed, folding his arms over his chest. "Our hero," he said dryly. "If you were _really_ doing your job properly, you would have brought that Avatar back here as soon as you confirmed Lord Herobrine accepted the offering." He gestured at Stacy condescendingly. "Instead, you let the vessel run off while you probably stood there, simping over him like some besotted fangirl."

Stacy stamped a foot down in frustration. "No, I didn't! I was going to get him, but his stupid friends showed up before I could pearl down and they grabbed him!" she snapped back and whirled on her heel, cloak snapping the air with her movement as she stalked for the armory, hand flicking to the crossbow in her hotbar. Kothra followed after her, chain-mail jingling as he matched strides with his taller height and longer legs easily. "I'm just one scout; how the hell am I to fight three Avatars with pvp experience?!"

"You should have signaled for backup. The Nether Portal Borderlands have our people patrolling around the clock and we're spread evenly over twenty chunks from the portal to the Overworld," Kothra said, watching sharply as they entered the armory and headed towards a wall full of double chests. Stacy opened one and gestured with a hand to open her inventory screen, pulling out an armful of arrows and rockets from the chest to throw into the floating window. "You wouldn't have to fight alone. Who took the vessel? I need names so I can get the spies started in investigating and tracking."

Stacy slammed the lid of the chest down and kicked at it with an angry huff. "They're his friends, the Dream Team or the Muffinteers, whatever they call themselves since they keep changing depending on who's around," she replied with a wave of her hand, dismissing both words and window in a single gesture. "Sapnap, GeorgeNotFound, BadBoyHalo. They don't stick to cities for longer than a couple days. They mostly run all over the wilderness with Dream in their manhunt training." She paused, pursing her lips together as she considered things and then tilted her head thoughtfully, eyes flicking over to Kothra. The other Cultist was typing into a chat window, likely sending the names via whisper to the spies scattered in the Overworld. "Lord Herobrine picked Dream as His new body, but I bet his friends won't like that. They might try and reverse the code transfer."

"I doubt that's possible." Kothra finished the last of his typing with a small flourish, twirling his fingers to dismiss the window. "Without Sky and Deadlox, there's no way to halt Lord Herobrine's source code. This Dream will be converted to our cause and our numbers will grow once more." Stacy narrowed her gaze as she nibbled on a thumbnail, a doubting hum escaping her. Then she shrugged and her expression brightened, a smile spreading over her face as her eyes sparkled.

"Well, just to be on the safe side, I'm gonna head to the Overworld and track him down myself! It'll be more fun to escort Lord Herobrine home, after all," she said cheerfully, clasping her hands together and posing cutely.

"You just want to simp some more," Kothra grumbled sourly. "Bring Him back as quickly as you can. Despite the Generals no longer being here, I don't trust Sky Army to not try something stupid in attempts to stop our Master's revival if He is discovered." He waved a hand in Stacy's direction. "Go. Play hero. At least you'll be useful." The Cultist just stuck her tongue out in retaliation before spinning on her heel and skipping off, humming cheerfully to herself.


	3. 42. Change

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While in hiding, George, Bad, and Sapnap come to terms with the changes Dream has undergone and what they have to do to keep him safe. However, those aren't the only things that change, as Dream awakens and Minecraftia itself takes action...

42\. Change

Several hundred blocks away from Sky Capital lay a forest village that traded in goods crafted from the numerous spruce and oak trees that sheltered them. Avatars that had used it as a base of operations during the Viral Wars had modified and built up the houses and structures, then left it mostly in the care of the villagers as they migrated back to the Capital. At the edge of the village was a rustic tavern that was built to provide a place for Avatars that were traveling to pop in for a hot meal and a room to rent for a night's rest.

One of the rooms was currently occupied by a group of Avatars who showed up late one night, with extra emeralds paid to the tavern keeper to let them share the room and keep his thoughts to himself on why.

George kept his arms wrapped around his head, legs pulled up to his body, as he sat in his chair. BadBoyHalo paced back and forth in front of him, arms folded over his chest and shifting nervously. The room they had rented was cozy, suitable for a single occupant to spend a night, but with four taking up space it was considerably more cramped.

A gentle tap on the door in a seemingly random pattern had Bad pause in his pacing and look over at it expectantly. It opened and Sapnap slipped into the room, a satchel stuffed with goods in one hand as he closed the door behind himself. "Any change yet?" he asked, keeping his voice down while setting the satchel down on a nearby table.

"No," Bad sighed, letting his arms and shoulders drop in a dejected slump. "He's still sleeping." His eyes shifted, glancing towards the figure in green laying on the bed in silence. "Y'know, I'm so used to him running around and yelling with the rest of us that seeing him so still and quiet like this for days on end is really muffin creepy." Sapnap nodded, making a soft noise of agreement as he rummaged through the satchel and brought out a few small loaves of bread. Passing one to Bad, he headed over to George and held out a loaf towards him.

George made no motion to take it.

Sapnap waited a few moments before sighing and rapping his knuckles gently against the top of George's head. "Breakfast, George. You gotta eat so you can keep your hearts up. And we gotta feed Dream so his don't drop too." He waited a bit more and grinned a bit when the other boy finally shifted out of his curled-up state to look at the bread. "There, see? Lucky this place had a fletcher so I could sell sticks and make us some emeralds. We'll be able to stay here another couple of days and then we gotta move again."

"Wouldn't have to keep moving if we could return those artifacts like George said we would," Bad grumbled halfheartedly. At the start of their week of running from Sky Capital he had said similar words with genuine irritation and worry. The artifacts were important to maintain the current way of life for all free Avatars; without them to provide the immunity to the Herobrine Virus as a form of energy that flowed through the network of gold blocks and items, the world of Minecraftia could be at risk of losing protections against infection. Worried for the state of the world and the trouble his friends could be in for taking them from their places, Bad offered to carry the artifacts back to Sky Tower Alpha and replace them.

But when George and Sapnap undid the cloak and mask, removing the faintly glowing objects from Dream's body, the sleeping Avatar was wrapped once more in the crackling diamond-blue energy, struggling as his hearts immediately dropped back to one, the ominous purple light having consumed one and creeping tendrils to another. In a panic, the boys put the artifacts back and the viral infection vanished from sight, glowing pink hearts shining from Dream's status screen.

"He's not cured after all," George said miserably, taking a bite of his bread and chewing slowly. "They're just sealing the Herobrine Virus inside Dream so it can't get any further in taking him over. We **can't** give them back." Sapnap blinked, looking up from his half-eaten loaf.

"Yeah, but in a weird way, that's good, isn't it?" he asked suddenly. George glared at him through the lenses of his glasses, frowning deeply.

"Why would you **say** that?" he asked and pointed his bread at the sleeping figure. "Dream's _infected_! The things that can immunize and protect everyone can't even **cure** him, just seal the Virus. How is **that** good?!"

"Okay, no, wait, think about it!" Sapnap stammered, waving his hands before himself. "What do we know about what the Herobrine Virus _actually_ is?" Bad raised a hand with a smile.

"Oh, I know this one! The Herobrine Virus was a program that took the form of Herobrine in Minecraft to stalk and replace SkythekidRS. It was written as part of a plot of revenge against the human world by a software engineer, designed to make a soul-link between Sky and his Player by digitizing part of the Player's consciousness and embedding it into Sky. This would allow Herobrine to write His own code in place of Sky's, hijack the link, upload Himself into the Player's body, and then use his influence over millions of subscribers to encourage acts of war!" he exclaimed in a rush of words. "The Virus created an army to help Him hunt down Sky when he escaped and the overwrite failed. By injecting portions of His own code into other Avatars, Herobrine created other Living Avatars under His control and those became the Cultists. They're easy to spot cuz they act like zombies and have glowing white eyes."

Sapnap nodded and looked at George. "We also know that when something called The Convergence happened, Herobrine's physical form got destroyed, but the code that made Him, His soul, got snapped back here to Minecraftia, because He created this world to be a trap for Sky and instead the Living Avatars used it as a battleground to keep Him contained here," he picked up on the explanation. "So now that He doesn't have a body, Herobrine can't make more Cultists with guaranteed infection, 'cuz He's the only one who can do that. That's why those Cultists were firing glowing arrows at any Avatar they saw, not just Dream, and chasing after anyone who got hit by one."

"I don't understand where this is going," George grumbled and savagely tore another bite of his bread in frustration.

"It means the arrows were carrying links to Herobrine's code itself, and if it's in me, **all** of Herobrine is in me, and if He's sealed in me, no one else can be put in danger of guaranteed conversion into a Cultist," a sleepy voice chimed in softly. George, Sapnap, and Bad all jerked their heads up and looked over to the bed in surprise, staring as Dream sat up and rubbed at his head, hair sticking out in tufts between his fingers. "Ugh, how long have I been out?" he groaned, moving his hand to his face. The mask got in the way and Dream jerked a bit in surprise, "What the hell?"

"Don't take that off!" George blurted, reaching out as Dream pressed his fingertips to the center of the mask, right between the wide-set 'eyes' of the smiley-face. The mask seemed to ripple into a wireframe model before vanishing, replaced by black goggles covering Dream's eyes and leaving his freckled face clear of any covering. "Wha-? Dream!" George leapt from his chair, bread flying in his wake, and dove for his friend, wrapping arms around him in a tight hug as he sobbed. "You're okay! You're awake! Dream!"

Bad and Sapnap joined in after a moment, crowding the bed in a group hug with Dream in the center, a tired smile on his face. There were no words shared, only the sounds of George's muffled sobs of relief, his face buried in Dream's shoulder. Eventually, they pulled back to give him space to breathe, though George stayed close, positioning himself so his knee pressed into the side of Dream's leg. The blonde sat back against the headboard of the bed, accepting a bowl of mushroom stew from Sapnap with a quiet thanks and eating at a measured pace. Once he was done, he set the bowl aside and raised his hands to the goggles, carefully lifting them to rest on the top of his head. Green eyes took in the changes to his clothes, the gloves and bracer, the strap and cloak, green shirt and rustic brown pants and boots.

"Didn't expect a skin change like this to happen while I was knocked out, but I guess this is how Minecraftia translated the skin Clay made for me?" Dream finally muttered and looked up at his friends. "How long was I out?"

"When did you wake up? You've been sleeping for over a week now!" Sapnap asked in return.

"When George started yelling. I heard you guys talking about the Herobrine Virus and how you thought it was probably a good thing I had the artifacts sealing Him inside me."

" **I** still don't think it's good at all," George huffed, pouting as he folded his arms over his chest. Dream chuckled, rubbing his head nervously.

"Maybe, but you guys still saved me from being completely taken over. Thank you," he told them warmly. Dream looked himself over again, turning his arms over and inspecting his changed clothes. "So, uh, where are the artifacts? They're supposed to be an amulet and a headset, right?"

"Yeah, but they transformed when we put them on you," Bad pointed out, reaching out to poke at the smiley face clasp and the goggles strap. "They're these things now, and we can't take them off you or Herobrine gets unsealed and starts corrupting your heart meter. You're at one heart and nothing we do could heal it, since Herobrine already took over one heart and we're pretty sure if the hearts were full He'd take them over faster." Dream frowned thoughtfully, brushing fingers over the clasp of his cloak.

"I don't feel like I'm at one heart," he muttered and reached up to gesture before himself to open his status window. He pulled back slightly at the sight of the pink hearts. "The hell is this?"

"Yeah, the artifacts kinda replaced your heart meter too. You've got these pink hearts instead. Everything else is the same," Bad added with a nod, rocking in place from where he sat on the bed, buzzing with energy.

Dream stared at his screen in silence, lips pressed into a thin line as he lifted a hand to his chin, a considering expression on his face.

"Herobrine is inside of my body. The artifacts are keeping Him sealed so He can't take me over and no one else can be infected by Him directly. But the same artifacts are what's keeping the peace in Minecraftia by providing immunity for everything and everyone else," he muttered out his thoughts as his friends leaned closer to listen. "I can't give them back without releasing Herobrine, and there's not enough immunity in Minecraftia to keep His infection from spreading faster. But if they're not returned, and the population finds out they're gone, we could be in trouble." He looked up from the screen at each of his friends. "That's why you've been running, taking me from the Capital. We're fucked if Sky Army finds this out and gets me."

"Herobrine's physical body was destroyed, but His soul was able to escape," Sapnap agreed quietly. George fidgeted in place, worried expression on his face.

"But now that He's in you, it's like He has a physical form again. But He isn't fully activated so His soul can't do anything, especially while sealed," he added. Bad grimaced, posture slumping again as the truth he'd been trying to avoid thinking about was finally confronted.

"So if Sky Army wants to destroy Herobrine, code and all, for good.. the best way would be to meme you with Herobrine inside you. Permanently," the hooded Avatar finished, tears welling up in his eyes. "We.. we _can't_ risk that, Dream. You're our friend. We have to save you!" Dream smiled at him fondly.

"You guys..." he began with a soft laugh. Whatever he was going to say next was interrupted by sudden, violent shaking that rattled the room, catching the four Avatars by surprise. "What the **hell**?"

They stumbled from the room, jostling down the stairs and out the tavern as other Avatars and villagers flooded out in a panic. Not just the room or the tavern, the whole world seemed to be shaking, animals racing around wildly as cries of alarm and fear filled the air. Overhead, the sky darkened, churning clouds of deep gray and red swirled, lightning lashing out and striking in the distance. Dream and his friends stared up at the sky, dread rising within them. Was it just coincidence this was happening after their revelation in the room, or something _more_?

The ground continued shaking violently, making it hard to stay standing in the chaos of panic. The sounds of distant explosions shot through the air. Far in the horizon, the landscape seemed to shift and transform, mountains erupting or falling seemingly at random. Finally, the shaking began to subside, the sky clearing up, and the population of the village emerged from their hiding spots, surveying the damages to their surroundings.

"What happened?" George whispered, one hand reaching out to grip Dream's arm lightly, assuring himself that he was still there. Dream reached back over his shoulder to grab the hood of his cloak, lifting it over his head to hide his hair and shadow his face.

"Think the game's changed," he muttered and looked at each of his friends. "We'd better get moving. Something tells me Sky Army isn't going to be the only force out to get us."

As one, the group turned and headed back into the tavern to plot their next course of action.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Dream Team/Muffinteers are lacking some vital inside information about The Convergence and the Viral Wars due to being awakened as Living Avatars AFTER the incident and not being part of the high ranks of Sky Army. Dream is the only one of them who was a member of the Army, but only applied to get extra training for the manhunt videos and was assigned the rank and role of scout, so he's essentially a nobody in Sky Army. Being taken on the run like this essentially means he was forced to desert the Army, which won't look good for him in the eyes of those high ranked members in the future.


	4. 46. Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning after the Artifacts are stolen, the high rank members and officials of Sky Army have a meeting to discuss the thefts, reports of strange blue light in the night, the strange mission the Cultists have been on, and the possible return of Herobrine. They need those artifacts back, so they enlist the aid of a top-tier combat specialist to track them down..

46\. Meeting

The chatter of the highest ranked members of Sky Army quieted down when the doors to the meeting room opened, granting entrance to TrueMU and Logdotzip who strode in, side by side. Somber expressions on their faces added weight to the grim state of affairs the Avatars were gathered to discuss. They approached the massive table where everyone was gathered, giving brief nods of greeting to the record-keeper seated nearby.

"Good afternoon; wish I could say that more genuinely but we do have a serious situation on our hands," TrueMU began, opening his inventory and taking out several papers to lay out on the table. They were passed around so each member had a copy. "Last night, the Sky Amulet and Deadlox Headset were stolen from Sky Tower Alpha."

Gasps of alarm and renewed chatter filled the air, the other Avatars fighting to be heard over each other as they demanded more information. Logdotzip rapped his fist against the tabletop, whistling to regain control of the conversation. The others fell abruptly silent, staring at him in surprise. "Save your questions for **after** the debrief," he told them firmly and nodded towards his friend.

"Thanks," TrueMU muttered gratefully and then cleared his throat. "The artifacts were discovered to be missing shortly after their defenses were activated. Preliminary investigations report that the likelihood it was the work of the Herobrine Cultists is minimal; the scouts haven't reported any active movements of the Cultists beyond their current ongoing sniping missions." He gestured towards the papers. "What you have in your hands is a screenshot taken by an eyewitness who was recording star movements and noticed an Avatar jumping from the top of the Tower."

The council picked up the images and studied the screenshot carefully. A blurred figure diving from Sky Tower Alpha, colored blue; there was little else in the way of identifiable characteristics. They looked at one another before collectively seeking out TrueMU for explanation. The space commander rubbed his head sheepishly.

"The quality isn't great but it was the best that could be gotten from them," he said and cleared his throat again. "Moving on. There were also some other reports from Avatars that claim they had seen flickers of blue light moving through the streets and alleys. There were no other reports of this blue light after the alarm was raised about the theft. It may just be coincidence, but we have agents looking into that separately who will report back later." He paused and then nodded once. "We'll be taking questions now."

The cacophony of voices started up again and Logdotzip sighed, giving TrueMU an unimpressed look, the younger Avatar sheepishly smiling back at him. He shook his head and rapped at the table again. "The first thing that's likely on everyone's mind is what we're to do about the immunization level in Minecraftia," he said, projecting his voice over the others. "We've sent a message to Sky and Deadlox; Minecraftia is lifting the restriction they put on themselves so they'll be returning soon, if not today. They won't have the full power they did during the Viral Wars, but Sky's songs can raise the level using his own immunity status." The others calmed immediately. "Now, questions?"

Papers were shuffled, notes jotted down, and one Avatar raised a hand for attention. "The Avatar that jumped from the Tower is the suspected thief, right? Do we have any Recruits actively searching for someone who fits the description of them or the appearance in this screenshot?" Setosorcerer asked, gesturing at the image.

"No; we decided against mobilizing Recruits for this particular mission," TrueMU announced. "The risks of information leaking to the public about the artifacts being stolen are too great. We also have to consider there may be spies in the city for the Cultists. We don't want them getting any ideas that we're vulnerable to infection." He held up a hand to halt the council from protesting. "However, we **did** hire someone to track down and recover the artifacts. He's been vetted after a thorough screening and is the best combat specialist we've seen to date."

"And he's not gonna run off with the artifacts himself?" JeromeASF asked doubtfully, nose twitching. TrueMU shook his head.

"We have an agreement with him and, according to our sources, it's known that he's a man of his word," he replied and then smiled ruefully. "In a manner of speaking." He sighed and then straightened, a serious expression on his face again. "Next order of business, the glowing arrows." He tapped another of the papers that had been passed around. "Sometime after the April 1st update this year further destabilized Minecraftia and introduced glitches, we've been receiving reports from the Recruits that Herobrine Cultists have been firing these glowing arrows at Avatars and hunting after anyone who is hit by them."

The council shuffled pages to find an image of an arrow with a diamond tip. They murmured in concern to one another; arrows usually had flint for their heads, and diamonds were still heavily associated with Herobrine despite much of the gems being clean of His influence and usable for armor and weapons.

"The arrow you see in that image was recovered from a Recruit that had been part of a camp clearing squadron," Logdotzip continued for TrueMU. "She had already taken damage during the battle and was killed by the shot. Luckily, she had stocked up on levels before the mission, so she respawned safely here. However, the arrow spawned in **with** her. This isn't normal for projectiles. The code research division was assigned to look into what the arrow's properties are and found it contained trace and callback functions embedded into it." He waited for everyone to process that and look up at him in alarm.

"What.. what would the arrows **do**?" GoldSolace asked, dread coloring his voice. There was more shuffling of papers as Setosorcerer dug out the matching analysis report and read it over, one hand raising to his mouth in silent horror. "Seto, you're the modmaster, what's that _mean_? What's it do?" the artist pressed, noticing his friend scanning the words rapidly.

"The trace is for tracking the Avatar that was hit by the arrow, like creating a player-tracking compass at the code's point of origin. The callback function runs a checklist on the Avatar that's hit, looking for certain attributes to match or meet a minimal requirement. If all of those are ticked off, it calls back to the code who needs those requirements met to run its own function," Seto explained and swallowed hard, setting the paper down. "It calls to the Herobrine Virus to begin uploading itself. These arrows.. they're made to revive Herobrine in whatever Avatar gets hit by one of these arrows and meets the requirements for Him."

The room exploded in yells and motions, BajanCanadian and JeromeASF already reaching for weapons and promising chaos and mayhem. Logdotzip resorted to banging on the tabletop with the pommel of one sword, trying to get the situation under control. "There's more to it than that!" he yelled. "The arrow is gone too!" Abruptly, the Avatars went silent, staring at him questioningly. The knight-like Avatar ran a hand through his hair, knocking his helmet askance. "Last night, while the late shift Avatars were trying to test ways of interrupting the callback, the arrow just shattered into particles and disappeared."

HuskyMudkipper and JeromeASF glanced at each other then at Logdotzip a few times before shrugging in confusion. "Isn't that a good thing?" Husky asked with a nervous chuckle. Seto flicked the paper away from himself in resigned apathy.

"It shattered because another arrow found an Avatar that met Herobrine's requirements and ran the callback," he said flatly and gave the two standing commanders a deadpan look. "Somebody out there is the new host for Herobrine, and the artifacts with the power to stop Him have been stolen. We're boned, aren't we?"

Silence fell over them all again, heavy with a sense of horror. "We..." Bodil40 began quietly and shook his head, eyes hidden behind his sunglasses. "We need Sky and Deadlox back. Maybe they can still use Viral Rage and Viral Fury?"

"We don't know if they can," TrueMU countered just as quietly. "The Viral modes called on viral coding that was in them back during the wars. That's been put into the artifacts to generate the immunizing aura. If they can call them without the coding, it'll probably be a lot weaker compared to several years ago." He tapped his knuckles against the tabletop lightly. "Bajan, Fluffy, I need you two to deploy the combat division to the Nether Borderlands. Hunt down every Nether Portal that's currently active, known or otherwise, and form a barricade." The best friends nodded, accepting the orders. TrueMU hesitated, then pressed on. "If you or any of your Recruits come across Herobrine's host, kill them. As many times as you can or it takes to put Him down for good. The Cultists haven't made moves against us other than firing these arrows, so let's assume that Herobrine isn't at full power or at His base of operations." He looked away, grimacing. "If it helps any, the Avatar may have already lost their mind and self to Herobrine. You'd be doing them a favor, setting them free of Him."

Stares of disbelief were mixed with shamed winces; no one wanted to think of what they could do, what they may have to do, if faced with the poor Avatar unlucky enough to be chosen by the arrows.

"That's all the information we have for now. None of the Recruits, no one outside this room, knows of the theft of the Anti-Viral Artifacts. Seto, can you mod some fakes that we can put on display for the time being?" Logdotzip asked, giving a brief smile at Seto's nod. "That's all for this meeting then. You've got your orders. Dismissed."

The room slowly emptied of Avatars as TrueMU and Logdotzip headed out to another meeting, this time to greet and issue the official orders to the Avatar they hired to recover the artifacts. They walked side by side, carefully observing their surroundings to be sure they weren't being followed. Leaving the Sky Army headquarters, they continued walking along, taking a lengthy and convoluted route around the Capital under the guise of strolling and chatting about Youtube videos, Minecraft events, the future update that could change Minecraftia again.

Once they felt they had sufficiently shaken any potential tails, the two commanders wandered their way to a small shop that hugged the wall that surrounded the city. Logdotzip knocked fingers against the bell set on a counter made of planks and slabs.

"I hear it, I hear it. Here I come, me and my fine potatoes," a smooth and even-toned voice called out in response, followed by a regal figure sweeping into the room from behind banners hung up like dividing curtains that hid the back of the shop from view. The Avatar was dressed richly, like a king, fur-lined red jacket and cape making him look out of place compared to his 'business'. A golden crown encrusted with gems and shimmering faintly with the light of immunization rested on his head. He cleared his throat delicately and flicked one hand to show a steaming baked potato on a plate, free hand glamorously running through pink hair in a show of careless extravagance. "If you've come for the best potatoes in Minecraftia, here they are. Served by the King of Potatoes himself!"

"There's a couple of potatoes we're hoping you're still interested in fetching for us," TrueMU said with a grin. "Technoblade, right? Agents tell us you have a reputation for winning whatever you set your sights on. We really need you to win this for us and keep it between us."

The kingly Avatar set the plate down and leaned back against the row of smokers behind him, arms folded over his chest as cold blue eyes stared down the two commanders. "The contract is for me to track down and bring back the Anti-Viral Artifacts by any means necessary," Techno recited and tilted his head. "Are you aware of the stories of the wish-granting djinni?" TrueMU and Logdotzip gave him confused looks and Techno smirked briefly. "Food for thought," he added offhandedly and pushed himself upright. "Well then, do you have any information you can share with me as a starting point or am I gonna have to go knock some heads together and see what falls out?"

A signed book was passed over, along with a shulker box in miniature form. Techno collected the items and opened the book, reading it over and nodding. He flipped pages until he reached the screenshot, where he paused, raised an eyebrow, and looked up at the commanders with an unimpressed expression. TrueMU sighed in exasperation.

"It was the best we could do!" he complained. He looked to Logdotzip for support and got only a faintly amused shrug.

"Rest assured, I'll make the best of the situation," Techno told them, flicking his hand to send the book back into his hotbar. He bowed his head respectfully to the two Avatars. "If you'll excuse me, gentlemen, I believe I have work to do." TrueMU and Logdotzip nodded and headed out. Techno waited and watched through the shop window until he was sure they were gone, then flicked back to the book to study the image again.

"What the hell did you get yourself into, George?" he muttered. "Gonna have to get in touch with Dream and meet with him about this. Something screwy's going on." And he turned on his heel, marching into the back room to grab his weapons and prepare for travel.


	5. 24. Backpack

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the Dream Team/Muffinteers continue their journey to avoid Sky Army, they stumble across the first of many changes Minecraftia made to itself, but the potential reason for the change brings no comfort...

24\. Backpack

The midday sun shone warmly down on the four Avatars walking through an expansive oak forest. They picked their way carefully past ferns and shrubs, hopping across fallen logs and solitary grass blocks to cross larger ponds of water. Leading the group with a compass in hand was Sapnap, who compared it to a map in his offhand and let out a huff, looking up at the sun as he flicked the compass to a clock and compared that.

"Sapnaaaap, my feet are killing meeee," Bad whined, flopping down onto the grass. "Can't we take a break? My hunger's loooowww."

"You just ate some bread like two hours ago, and we haven't done **any** running! **How** is your hunger low?!" Sapnap exclaimed, throwing his arms up.

"Hey! Don't yell at Bad!" Dream piped in, tossing a dirt block at Sapnap in retaliation. "He's been blocking attacks from that weird girl who shot at me. That's probably why his hunger's low!"

George left the three to bicker amongst themselves as he gathered wood from nearby trees to craft a workbench and place it down. He busied himself with crafting a campfire, which he placed down in the center of a clearing. He checked his inventory for wool and used that to construct a couple of tent-like builds, placing a few pieces of carpet on the ground in each one. By the time he was done and set himself up to fish at the edge of the clearing for whatever was in a nearby pond, the sun was hanging lower in the sky and Dream had taken to thumping his head against the lone tree George had left standing for aesthetics. Bad and Snapnap continued to argue over how much hunger blocking attacks actually took away.

"Guys," George called out with a soft laugh. "You don't have to keep arguing that. C'mon. I'm getting food." His smile widened at the sound of his friends noticing the makeshift camp he set up and expressing surprise at it. He looked over his shoulder, watching as BadBoyHalo dug through his own inventory window to take out a few loaves of bread. Snapnap crawled into one tent, hands pressing onto the carpet. He made a few appreciative noises and flopped down, rolling over onto his back and lounging there with a happy sigh.

Dream sat at the campfire, mask pushed up onto his head as he gazed blankly into the flames.

"Dream?" George called out to him worriedly. "Are you alright? ..Dream?" He waited a moment before calling out again. "Dream!" This time he got a reaction. The green-cloaked Avatar blinked and looked up at him, puzzled.

"George? What? What is it?" Dream asked as if the brunet was the one to be worried about.

"Are you good?" George asked him, part of his attention on the fishing line being gently tugged at. "You kinda.. spaced out on us there."

"What? Oh," the other Avatar replied and shook his head. "Yeah, no, I'm fine. Just tired. We've been.. we've been traveling a pretty long way from that village. Been a rough few.. few days." He reached a hand up absently, fingertips tracing over the glowing clasp holding his cloak together before tapping at it firmly. The cloak shimmered into a wireframe model that seemed to ripple and flow upward, compressing itself until it became a lime green cord that held the smiling face clasp in place like a medallion. "I'm just gonna take a quick bath. Feel grimy and ugh," Dream added with a wry grin, standing back up.

There were shuffling sounds and Sapnap was crawling back out of the tent. "Hey, wait! Bath race! Me and you!" he declared, waving a hand at Dream, who just laughed and walked away to another pond. "At least wait for me to get torches, dammit!"

"Language!" Bad gasped indignantly, and George relaxed at his friends' antics before panicking at the sudden jerk of his fishing rod, barely in time to pull it up and grab the fish that had latched on.

A few blocks away from the campsite where Bad and George were cooking, Dream and Sapnap sat in a clear pond, washing up from the day's travel. Sapnap kept one eye on their clothes, folded and stacked neatly on the grass nearby. A few torches were stuck into the ground, providing ample light to discourage hostile mobs from approaching. Beside him, Dream scrubbed at his hair, grumbling under his breath.

"You didn't really have to come with me, y'know," he suddenly spoke up and Sapnap shrugged, his gaze moving from the clothing to the depths of the forest beyond their circle of light. "I know you're actually just.. like.. bodyguarding me.. or something."

"Nah, I'm just like you. Gotta wash them stinky feet," Sapnap replied with a laugh that sounded only slightly false. He got a punch in the shoulder for it and looked back with a lopsided grin. It faltered a little at Dream's glare before widening. "Nice try, but you _really_ don't look that intimidating sitting there naked with your hair sticking up all over the place," he quipped, laughing while the other boy yelped and set about fixing his hair. He sat back, reclining against the edge of the pond as he looked up at the twilit sky. "Fine, you got me. We're not letting you out of sight if we can help it, especially now that we've got that weird red-hood fangirl chasing after us to get to you," he admitted and scowled a little. "I remember seeing her in the Nether; she was the one who shot you with that fucked up arrow. That look on her face, _brr_! Gave me chills."

"You guys don't have to keep following me, y'know," Dream said with a shrug. "This is basically another Minecraft Manhunt. I have a good win ratio in those, as you know." Sapnap nodded slowly.

"Yeah, but this has bigger stakes," he said quietly. "If you lose **this** manhunt.. we lose **you**." He reached out, slinging an arm across the shoulders of the smaller Avatar and pulling him close in a side-hug. "None of us want that. So it's them versus the four of us. Two Speed Class, one Power Class, and one Defense Class; we're stronger together. Sky Army won't stand a chance and neither do those red-hood fans."

"Not really a fan if her first reaction to me is to shoot me in the back," Dream grumbled, leaning into the hug before pulling back. "All right, I'm getting all wrinkly and cold. Bath's over, I'm going back to camp for some food." Sapnap nodded and moved to also get out. " _Seriously?!_ Camp is like ten feet that way!" Dream squawked incredulously, waving an arm wildly in the direction of the campfire.

"Don't make me get the lead and tie it around your waist," the taller Avatar threatened jokingly. They dressed, still laughing, then headed back to the camp.

After a dinner of cooked fish and bread, Sapnap offered to take the first watch while the others rested. He sat back against a placed oak log, iron sword in hand, and gazed out at the forest. Inside the tents, George and Dream slept quietly, curled close together, the soft light of Dream's clasp playing over their faces. BadBoyHalo sprawled over his own carpeting, mouth opening and closing in time with his near silent snores. A peaceful night, or so it seemed.

Rustling leaves caught Sapnap's attention and he stood slowly, cautiously, tightening his grip on his sword. More rustling, this time from the east of the camp, and then the sound of groans and moans, followed by the familiar rattling of bones. Uttering a sharp curse under his breath, Sapnap darted for the closest source of noise. "Guys! Get up! Mob raid!" he yelled out, lashing out with his sword at a zombie that emerged from the shadows, its arms raised to grab at him.

There were muffled sounds of surprised voices behind him, then yelps of alarm before the other three got free of the tent structures and joined the battle. Sapnap glanced back briefly to get a sense of where everyone was standing. Bad had a shield ready, stone sword in hand that he swiped at a skeleton before it could fire its bow. George swung a wooden sword around wildly, keeping a pair of zombies back with his erratic motions. Nearby, Dream leapt at another zombie, bringing an iron axe down in a cleaving movement for extra damage.

As mobs fell to their attacks, leaving behind an assortment of rotten flesh and bones and arrows, still more zombies shambled into view, encroaching on the campsite from all sides. With the moon still halfway across the starlit sky, it'd be hours before they got any respite.

"Sapnap, we're not gonna be able to hold the camp!" Dream called out, ducking behind Bad as the demonic Avatar spun to raise the shield and block an incoming arrow. "We need to go! There's gotta be a village or something! A cave!"

"But what about the wool?! Let me get some of the blocks back!" George protested, already trying to break down one of the tents.

"Just _leave_ it, George!" Sapnap yelled, stabbing another zombie and kicking it away from himself. It hit the ground and burst into particles, leaving behind an iron ingot. He grabbed it and threw it into his hotbar before turning to run back to the others. "C'mon! Let's go! This way!" He reached out, grabbing Dream by the arm and pulling him away from a Creeper that had been stalking in from a blind spot, its body flashing in preparation to explode. Bad and George followed after him, abandoning the campfire and the remnants of the campsite as the four headed in a random direction.

They fled deeper into the forest, searching for anything they could use as shelter that would be more fortified than the campsite had been. A gleam of light in the distance caught their attention and they ran towards it. Light sources could mean lava or a village, either one would help them get protection from the mobs spawning in all around them.

As they drew closer, Bad pointed out the source itself. A lantern hanging from a block that was part of a lamp post construct formed of fence posts; the lamp post stood by a path etched into the grass and leading deeper into the woods. The group didn't stop to think about it, just immediately took the path and kept running, dodging arrows that zipped after them from skeletons they left behind.

The path led them towards a waterfall that came down from a large hill, which flowed into a lake that fed into a river leading into the distance. Sapnap dug in his heels, halting himself at the sight of a strange construct on the edge of the lake. The others plowed into him at full speed and they fell over into a heap.

"Dude, **warn** us that you're gonna stop **before** you stop!" Dream told him, struggling to get out from under George and Bad.

"Why did you stop anyway? The mobs are gonna get us!" George asked, adjusting his glasses as they'd been knocked askew. Sapnap pointed at the construct, a large square building made of stone with blocks taken out so it looked like a Creeper's head. An entrance was in the 'mouth', but no door could be seen.

"Who built that?" he asked as the others got up and helped him to his feet.

"Dunno, but it'll do for now. Let's get inside before those muffinhead mobs find us!" Bad declared and bolted for the build. The others followed him inside and took a moment to breathe while George opened his inventory.

"Does anybody have wood? We need a door!" he called out. Dream walked over, opening his own inventory screen.

"Yeah, here. I've got some birch planks," he offered, fingers selecting a number of the materials to pull out and hand over. While they hurried to set down another workbench and craft the door, Sapnap held out a torch and looked around the interior of the construct, whistling in surprise.

The place was well decorated but looked abandoned. Bookshelves lined the sides, along with decorations that looked like they were modded into Minecraftia. Candles glowed on stonework and on the floor, scattered here and there as though without reason. Cobwebs clung to the ceiling and corners. A strangely ornate double chest was placed at the far wall, spotlit by tall metal poles bearing candles on top.

"Okay, this should be good for now," George sighed in relief, closing the newly placed door and tucking the other two and his workbench back into his inventory. He finally looked around with Dream, taking in the sights Sapnap and Bad had already seen. "Whoa.. what is this place?"

They explored a bit, examining the books and candles. Sapnap took down a shield from where it hung on the wall and tilted his head at the odd shape it was in. Not long and rectangular like Bad's shield; it was smaller and tapered to a point at the bottom. It reminded him a bit of the wood and gold covering on the outside of Dream's bracer. He shrugged and added it to his offhand slot, grinning as it locked into place on his left arm. George placed down the last of his carpeting on the floor, yawning tiredly, and Dream went to check out the chest.

"Let's see what loot is in here. Never seen a chest like this before," he said to the others cheerfully. He ran his hands over the gold trim and accents before opening the clasps and pushing the lid up. Light shone out from within in a quick burst before fading. Startled, Sapnap and Bad rushed over to see what was going on, George joining in to peek into the chest.

A strangely ornate bow rested inside the chest, laid within like a placed item. Sapnap made a questioning sound, reaching in to grab it and take a look. A strange screen opened before him once he picked it up, displaying symbols and stats that weren't the norm for Minecraftia. George adjusted his glasses, squinting at the screen.

"Power Bow? But.. it doesn't _look_ enchanted. There's no glow to it," he said in a puzzled tone, then gaped as he read further. "What?! No way! It says this bow can do 100 damage!"

"What? What does **that** mean? Is that like +100 Attack? Is that even possible on a bow?" Bad asked in confusion, leaning close on Sapnap's other side to look at the screen himself. "Is it a mod? A plugin? Minecraftia has some code from those things active, right?"

"Weird," Sapnap muttered and held it out to George. "Here, you take it. All you have is that wood sword right? This is better and you can cover us." The brunet accepted the bow and opened a screen over it, frowning as he typed commands into it. "What else is in there, Dream?"

"Umm," the blonde hummed, reaching in and pulling out a leather item. "There's this backpack. Looks like it's from the mod. Empty too."

"Oh! You should keep that, Dream! You can carry extra supplies since you gather them way faster than the rest of us," Bad told him brightly and looked into the chest himself. "What else is there?" A few emeralds littered the bottom of the chest along with a folded up shirt. He pocketed the emeralds and tossed the shirt towards Sapnap. "Here. Check out that. Whoever modded leather armor made it look pretty cool."

"It's not leather armor," Sapnap said in a wary tone, holding up the shirt and reading the screen that opened over it. "It's called Hunter's Armor. +20 health, +10 arrows per bundle, +30% ranged damage? What is this; Wynncraft?"

"Maybe it gives you two more rows of hearts? That sounds pretty OP," Dream suggested, shrugging on the backpack under his cloak. He tapped fingertips to one of the straps, paused, then tapped again. "Huh. Weird. The inventory isn't opening?"

"Try swiping," George called out, eyes glued to the screen hovering in the air in front of his face, reading over the data scrolling upwards. The blonde raised an eyebrow questioningly, then passed fingertips over the strap in a quick stroke. The inventory screen opened and Dream grinned, gesturing aside to open his personal inventory alongside it. "I'm looking at this bow's code to see what mod it came from, but a lot of this has fingerprints of being official stuff. Like from Mojang." The scrolling stopped and George scowled. "It's from Minecraft Dungeons, not a mod or plugin."

The others stared at him in silence before looking at the items they held and around at the structure they hid in. "The spin-off game?" Bad asked incredulously. "How did stuff from Minecraft Dungeons end up in Minecraftia? It's not even Java!" Sapnap put away the odd shield before pulling the new armor on over his shirt, opening his status screen to see the effects. He blinked, staring at a large heart that had appeared in the center of his hotbar, splitting it in half. His heart meter remained in place over the left half of the bar, so what was with the single big one in the middle?

"Minecraftia adapted stuff from mods and plugins but those were made to work with Minecraft. But then all those glitches people talk about started happening because of what happened with The Convergence," he said, dismissing his screen. "Maybe some major glitch allowed Minecraftia to pull in stuff from Dungeons?" He paused, thinking over his own words before blinking in surprise. "Wait, is **this** what you meant by Sky Army not being the only force after us, Dream?" Sapnap blurted out.

"Pretty much, yeah, I mean, if you were a sentient world that was unstable and the virus that caused it all popped back up in a benign and easily killable form, wouldn't **you** try and make yourself extra hostile in hopes of killing off that virus before it fucks you up even more?" Dream asked casually, nodding at Bad's scolding _'Language!'_ at him. He waved a hand around the building. "That earthquake must have been when stuff like this was added, so there's bound to be a lot of these dungeons and new weapons and stuff out there. Probably new mobs too. I don't know this stuff, I don't have experience with it." He gave his friends a worried look. "I can't speedrun effectively until I learn about all this new stuff first. That puts me at a huge disadvantage; this manhunt is stacked against us."

"Then we should get some more supplies and train here!" Bad suggested, bouncing in place excitedly. "We can use this place as a temporary base. Make a lil farm outside, grind mobs for XP and drops, and see if any more of these Dungeons things spawn nearby."

"Sounds like a plan to me. Once we've got better gear, we can keep traveling and not get caught off guard like back there," George agreed, jerking a thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the campsite. "What do you think, Dream?"

The blonde was silent, rubbing one hand over the strap of the backpack with a distant gaze. He snapped out of it abruptly and shook his head. "What? Oh, yeah." He smiled ruefully at his friend, "Whatever you say, George. We'll start in the morning."

With a plan in place to train and study the changes in the world around them, the four Avatars settled down on the carpeted floor to sleep, clutching shields and weapons close for assurance. Despite being thrown for a loop by Minecraftia's changes, they still felt confident they could overcome the new challenges as long as they were together.

If only that lasted...


	6. 16. Protect

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Technoblade continues his quest to find George and figure out what the hell is going on. But the more clues he gathers to track the missing Avatars, the more he suspects something darker is at the core of the situation.

16\. Protect

Three days of no contact. Technoblade scowled, slumped in his saddle as he rode along a gravel path. Whatever was going on with George stealing the artifacts (and Techno couldn't fathom a reason for why the little coder Avatar would do that), either Dream was in on it and gone silent, or...

"The story of the Anti-Viral Artifacts goes that Sky and Deadlox had to wear those items constantly, in order to keep the Herobrine and Squid Viruses at bay," he murmured to himself. He lifted one hand, calling up his hotbar to let him look at the signed book of information given to him by the Sky Army commanders. "You don't take something that was serving an alternate purpose unless you need it to serve another purpose."

It was too far of a stretch. He needed more information, needed to talk to George and Dream, find out what was going on. For that, Techno needed to find them before anyone else could. And that led him to this path wandering deep into a birch forest, one that would lead him to the house the Dream Team lived in when training near Sky Capital.

One of the key items that went into a Minecraft Manhunt was a compass that was coded to track the speedrunner. In the case of the band of friends, the compasses they held all tracked Dream, the needle pointing towards him unerringly. Techno hoped to get his hands on one of those compasses.

A plume of smoke rose over the trees in the distance and Techno sat up, relief making him relax with a grin. He spurred his horse on, galloping down the final stretch. A three story house came into view, nestled among the trees and made of birch, stone brick, and oak. Sheep and cows idled in their pens attached to the building, dopey eyes blinking up at the horse that came to a stop at the gate.

Techno dismounted and threw a lead onto the horse to tie it to a fence post, looking up at the house cautiously. There didn't seem to be any activity inside the house, no movement at the windows or sounds of life. He drew his sword and climbed up the steps, pushing open the door slowly and listening. A few moments of silence greeted him, and he entered the house, searching out exits and potential trap triggers.

"Dream? George? Sapnap?" he called out in a deliberately casual tone. "Just got paid on a recent job and figured I'd splurge on taking you guys out to eat so I can flex my wealth on you three. You in?" He walked through the main room, decorated to be a den for the friends to gather and chill by a fireplace or grab a meal in the kitchen area. When no response came, Techno moved towards the staircase and headed up slowly, sword still at the ready.

"Y'know, this silent treatment feels really unfriendly to a guy who just wants to hang out with his best buddies and buy 'em a delicious meal. There's that tavern in the next village over; heard they serve some pretty sweet rabbit stew."

The second floor had 4 doors. From what Techno had seen of the house's footprint, each room was sure to be comfortably spacious. He pushed open the first door, pressing himself to the side to keep himself somewhat defended by the wall and doorway. It revealed a bedroom, nicely decorated and containing an armor stand with enchanted gold armor and a chest at the foot of the bed. Techno glanced around before entering and headed for the chest.

"Score one for the champion," he muttered to himself, spotting the Manhunt Compass inside and transferring it to his own hotbar. He flicked his hand from his sword to the compass, studying it. The needle pointed westward, in the direction of the forest village he had been thinking about. "Huh, guess you guys went to eat without me. That's rude, but I understand. I understand. Hope you don't mind if I drop in and get some stew too?" He flicked the compass away and headed out, pausing at the sight of the other doors.

The Manhunt Compass would make tracking Dream all too easy. And George had made several for multiple hunters since Dream kept amping up the challenge for himself. It wouldn't do to leave the others behind, just in case Sky Army wasn't able to keep the info about the stolen artifacts under wraps. Nodding to himself, Techno moved into the other rooms, searching for more compasses.

Dream's room didn't have any compasses, though Techno found a Recruit's handbook of rules and a signed book containing mission orders from some lieutenant in Sky Army. He read them over warily, eyebrows furrowing together.

" _'Patrol Nether Borderlands chunks F-I and report on any activity if seen. All scouts are spoken for, expect solo patrol.'_ Hanh?" Techno breathed out noisily, squinting at the orders. " _ **Hanh?**_ When was **Dream** enlisted in the Sky Army? _Why wasn't I **told** of this?_ I could've talked him **out** of it! These orders.. these orders are giving me the **bad** , bad vibes!" He added both books to his inventory and whisked into the next room.

George's room was half bedroom, half coding workshop, with a command block placed next to a shulker box. Techno headed straight for the box, opening it and blinking at the number of compasses within it. Was Dream planning to increase the number of hunters for his training? He flicked to his pickaxe and used it to pop the shulker box back into its item form, scooping it up.

Hurrying outside to a clear spot away from the house, Techno pulled out a flint and steel, clicking them together to start a fire on the grass. Once the flames were up and flickering, he pulled the shulker box of compasses out and prepared to toss it in. He hesitated, staring at the box in his hand for several moments before placing it down on the grass nearby. He then took out his own shulker box, the one given to him by the commanders with his payment inside. A few more of the Manhunt Compasses were transferred over, the box put away afterwards.

"I'll get you another box, George," Techno promised, tossing the other box full of compasses into the flames and watching it burn to nothing. He put out the flames with his sword and headed back to his horse. Time to get hunting.

\---

The forest village tavern keeper did good in keeping his mouth shut on if Dream and his friends had stopped by, but Techno remained undaunted. The language of violence trumped the extra emeralds Sapnap had paid out, and all it took was Techno tapping his flint and steel lazily against the spruce log support pillar he leaned on. The information he was given didn't offer much comfort.

George and Sapnap had indeed shown up with Dream, but BadBoyHalo was also with them. The description of Dream Technoblade had given the tavern keeper had also confused the villager. There had been a blonde Avatar with them, but he wasn't wearing a grey hoodie and black pants. He had been dressed mostly in green, with a white mask covering his face that was decorated with a 'creepy' smile. He had also been carried in by Sapnap, as though unresponsive to his surroundings.

Techno tossed a few emeralds into the air in the keeper's direction as he walked away. The more information he gathered, the more he was not liking what it all could mean. He checked the compass. Still westward. He had to keep moving and catch up.

\---

The horse came to a stop at a clearing in an expansive oak forest, head bending down to sniff at a few forgotten loaves of bread. Techno dismounted and hummed, narrowing his eyes at what looked like a hastily abandoned camp, tents with blocks of wool and wood missing, carpet placed on grass, a cold campfire that lost its embers. He reached down and grabbed a cooked salmon from its place on the campfire logs, sniffing at it before shrugging and munching on the food to fill his own hunger meter. Was this camp built by the Muffinteers?

There were scraps of red cloth, as if someone else had been by and got their clothes caught on the thorns of the berry bushes. Dust of some kind was left scattered on a placed oak log. Techno ran a finger through it to get a better look. It was grey and sparkling, as if it came from some sort of enchanted moth mob.. or a vex.

The compass pointed more northwest this time. Techno got back on his horse and resumed the chase. It looked like he wasn't the only one following Dream's trail now.

\---

The Creeper head construct at the edge of a lake made him react with another confused _'Hanh?'_ at the sight of it. Arrows and rotten flesh were scattered around it, along with pits in the ground from Creeper explosions. A battle had taken place here, obviously, but who took part in it? Dream and the Muffinteers, or the mystery trackers with red clothes?

Techno drew the horse closer to the construct, not willing to dismount in a place where an ambush could take place. Part of the stone that made up the Creeper head had been blasted away. A birch door was placed in the 'mouth' of the head. It was still closed.

Deciding to take a chance and investigate, Techno hopped off the horse and placed a fence post to tie the lead to it. He headed to the door, diamond sword in hand, and knocked on it a few times. He waited a few moments, listening for any reaction to his tapping, then opened the door and headed inside the construct.

The interior was lit by a combination of various candles and waning sunlight streaming in from the hole in the wall that was probably blown open by an actual Creeper. Techno looked around, puzzled by the decor briefly before focusing on taking in the setting. There was carpet placed on the floor, no beds; beds would set a spawn point and it was likely their spawn was set back at the birch forest house in the case of Dream Team, and Skeppy's Mansion in the case of BadBoyHalo. A workbench was set up by a very fancy double chest, made with a reddish wood and accented in gold, alongside a furnace. Bare essentials for stable living; had this place been a temporary base until it could be fortified?

He tapped the furnace, opening its screen. A few birch planks were placed in the burn slot, the top slot empty of whatever the furnace had been cooking. Birch. Techno glanced towards the door and thought back to the forest house. Dream had picked that location because of the forest and his preference for birch trees and their wood. His supply of wood from home would be dwindling, what with the travel path winding through forests of oak and spruce.

Techno turned to the chest, admiring it for a moment before opening it. He startled at the lack of an inventory screen, blinking at the items just laid inside the chest as though placed in the world. A fishing rod, some sticks and string, seeds; a beginning hoard, useful but won't cause harm if left behind in a rush. He pulled out the rod and checked the durability on it. Mostly new, still useful, so he added it to his hotbar.

He rose from his crouch and brushed dust from his cape, patting at the sleeves of his jacket and wrinkling his nose at the dusty clouds lifting away. Dust still in the air, not yet settled and drifting from the hole in the building; the explosion must have been very recent. He checked the compass, the needle dipped from northwest to just west, following a path deeper into the forest past the lake and waterfall. After so many days of travel, one spent just on trying to figure out what caused Minecraftia's weird storm and ground shaking, it would be nice to finally close in the band of friends. The horse helped a lot; Dream alone and chased could cover a lot of ground in a single day, but supported by the team meant they could cover far more.

Unless they were forced to slow down for any reason.. Techno counted out the pitstops on one hand and frowned. Beneficial but double-edged.

As he mounted the horse again, a strange hum vibrated his crown and Techno reached up to pull it off and look at it suspiciously. The enchantment shine on it seemed brighter, as though rejuvenated, if only a little. He tilted his head, puzzled before his eyebrows shot up. The immunization aura; it had been replenished and increased, which meant the power of the artifacts had been used somehow, if not the Anti-Viral Avatars themselves had shown up and had Sky sing to bolster it across the land from Sky Tower Alpha. If the Avatars were brought back from exile, there would have been celebrations or rumors of it in cities and villages all over. Techno brought up his chat window and frowned. Nothing, no messages from any of his contacts, just the same whispers he had sent to Dream that were never answered. He hadn't sent any since starting his hunt with the compass, hadn't thought to try again. He sent another, just to let the speedrunner know that he was coming along to ask some questions about 'rumors'.

Still no response. Techno just sighed and picked up the pace of travel.

\---

The path eventually turned from gravel and beaten grass to cobblestone and coarse dirt, passing through a cobble and wood gate that allowed entry through a wall that surrounded a village. The village itself was mainly dark and eerily silent, no villagers bustling about or Iron Golems patrolling the land. Techno pursed his mouth into a thin line, squinting distrustfully at the seemingly abandoned houses and glancing up at the sky to check the time. It was well past noon but still bright enough that a village population should be out and about to do their jobs.

He pulled out the compass, checking it while he considered where to start searching for clues, and blinked at the needle pivoting as the horse moved along the path through the village. He stopped the horse, sliding off and walking back the opposite way. The needle moved again, pointing in one direction and pivoting to stay pointed. "..He's **here** ," Techno muttered in realization, looking up at the houses hopefully.

Leaving the horse behind to graze, the kingly Avatar headed up the steps of a side path, looking among the houses and comparing the compass to where he faced. Eventually, he came across one house that had a glow of light from a fireplace shining through a window that was covered by a trapdoor. Techno looked up at the chimney, curious as to how a fire set in the house didn't have smoke reaching up through the sky. He caught the tail end of smoke effects drifting from the opening and fizzling out before they could rise any further. So that's why he couldn't see it from a distance; whatever caused the smoke was set further down the build so the particle effect died out before it could give away their location from afar.

He walked up the steps to the house and paused at the door, listening to Sapnap and Bad arguing over whether or not they should TP back to the Capital or to another friend and ask for help. No sound from George or Dream, odd. Techno sighed in exasperation; looking out for these four was almost as bad as looking after TommyInnit and Tubbo_ when those two got into mischief. Well, time to finally get the other side of the story and see the full picture. He knocked on the door and waited.

There were sudden panicky tones from the Avatars inside the house, and then the door opened just a little, Sapnap peeking out suspiciously with a sword in hand.

"If you hit me with that, you're not going to have a very good time after," Techno told him with a smile.

"Techno!" Bad exclaimed cheerfully, shooing Sapnap from the door and opening it fully to let him in. "You found us! That's great! Maybe you can help us?"

"Maybe," Techno agreed noncommittally, nodding his head in greeting to Sapnap as the Avatar looked outside quickly for anyone else before shutting the door. He looked around, spotting George standing at the fireplace where a campfire was placed, a few fish cooking on the wood. The brunet was looking at him with a strange expression, brows furrowed in thought. Bad went on describing situations with the abandoned campsite and the Creeper head construct, happily sharing stories while Techno continued facing down George's stare.

" _How_ did you **find** us?" George finally asked, and his question immediately silenced Bad and had Sapnap jerk his head around to stare at the pink-haired Avatar in alarmed realization. Techno raised a hand slowly, aware of a sudden tension in the air, and flicked his hand to the compass. He tossed it to George.

"You shouldn't leave things like that out in the open. I had to destroy the rest to make sure no one else found them, especially Sky Army," he replied evenly, watching George examine the compass and immediately pale, staggering back. His shaking hands gripped the item as Sapnap and Bad joined him to study it, supporting him subtly.

"What is it? What's wro- _oh_. Oh, _**muffin**_ ," Bad breathed, catching on as Sapnap took the compass and swung his arm around, wide eyes watching the needle pivot to keep pointing at the staircase nearby. "The Manhunt Compass! How did we _forget_ about **those**?!"

"Wait, wait," George breathed, panicked eyes darting up to Technoblade. "You said Sky Army. Why would **you** know about Sky Army trying to find us? Why would they look for **my** compasses?" Techno inhaled, then exhaled slowly, then gestured towards a nearby table and chairs.

"Can we have a conversation, George? I feel like a conversation will really help all of us. It'll clear the air, get some questions answered; I feel like you have a lot of questions and I'll be happy to answer in exchange for some answers too," he said calmly, turning on his heel with a swish of his cape to take a seat. He waited patiently, taking time to dust off the tabletop with a wrinkle of his nose. Did the villagers who used to live here not keep things tidy?

George took a seat across the table from him, with Sapnap and BadBoyHalo joining him in solidarity, watching Techno warily. "A conversation. Okay," George agreed slowly. "What do you want to know?"

Techno opened his mouth, closed it, then narrowed his eyes. "Why isn't Dream out here?" he asked, looking over at the stairs the compass had pointed towards. The three friends looked at one another, wincing and holding a quick conversation with expressions and hand movements only that had the kingly Avatar just stare incredulously at them. Finally, there seemed to be a begrudging consensus on an answer and George's shoulders slumped gloomily.

"Something.. _happened_ to him, like earlier today," George began in an uncertain tone. "There's a jukebox in the den, did you see it? This morning, when we were having breakfast and getting ready to train, it started playing music." He paused and shook his head slowly. "No, it was _broadcasting_ music. A song. Someone singing _'Hallelujah'_."

The hairs on the back of Techno's neck lifted, attention focused entirely on George and the story he was telling. He nodded numbly once George finished and the room remained quiet for a moment.

"So you gonna tell us what you were doing with one of our compasses and how you're involved with Sky Army?" Sapnap asked, arms folded over his chest.

"Let me see Dream first," Techno shot back, gripping his hands together. "You haven't answered my other questions but I'll play fair. I'll tell you when I see him."

Bad hurried towards the kitchen, filling a glass bottle with water from a cauldron that was placed as a sink. George nodded at him, then gestured to Techno before heading up the stairs. The group followed, and Techno was led to what looked like a bedroom door. George gave it a gentle warning knock, then opened it and led everyone inside.

Dream curled up in the bed in the corner of the room, shivering and pale, hands clutching at his shirt over his heart. Bad hurried over to him and helped him sit up before passing him the bottle of water to drink. Techno pulled a chair from a nearby desk over to the bed and took a seat, giving Dream a complicated look. This was turning out to be upsetting in more ways than one.

"H-hey, Technoblade," Dream managed to greet him, the 'creepy' mask resting on his head while he gave the kingly Avatar a weak smile. "Nice of you to visit. Dunno how you managed that." Techno returned his smile with a small one of his own, faintly exasperated despite the seriousness of the situation, before it faded as he looked over the smaller Avatar.

"Does it feel like you're burning from the inside out, but you're not registering a fever?" he asked. Dream nodded, giving him a wide-eyed stare. "That's your soul burning a little of itself to fuel the immunization boost."

 _"What?!"_ George blurted out in horror as Sapnap echoed his cry of alarm. He rushed to the bed, hands frantically trying to feel over Dream's face in search of some sign of 'burning'. "Your hearts! Dream, how many hearts do you have?! Should we get you potions?!"

"George! Off, off! I've got full hearts, I'll be okay!" the speedrunner protested weakly, twisting away from him to shiver again. "I'll b-be f-fine. Just need more rest."

George gave him a helpless look before turning to Techno. The kingly Avatar nodded once. "He's right," Techno agreed. "All he can do is rest for now. The effects will wear off eventually." He sat back and sighed. "I promised you answers, so..." He gestured lazily with one hand. "I was contracted by the current commanders of Sky Army to track down and bring back the artifacts you stole, George, by any means necessary," he revealed.

The brunet blinked, then set his mouth into a thin line, hands tightening into fists. "I'm not giving them back," he said determinedly. "We **need** them." Techno just gazed at him impassively. "I'll **fight** you to keep them, if I have to," George added, and the other Avatar caught the nervous tremble in his hands. Dream passed a worried expression between the two of them, one hand gripping the clasp of his cloak tightly.

"Me too," Sapnap added, standing by George to glare at Techno. Bad joined them silently, swallowing hard but nodding his own agreement.

"Is that your plan? The three of you fight me for the artifacts, knowing even Dream couldn't beat me?" Techno asked with a dry grin, leaning back in his chair with an amused huff. "Well, before you bust out the pvp, let me just remind you the story of the djinn, who granted the wishes of its master when released from captivity. Thing is, if you're not careful when you make your request, the djinn will grant it with whatever interpretation it chooses." He shrugged, grin widening. "Those commanders never said **when** they wanted me to bring those artifacts back, and if it's _necessary_ to help Dream first before they can be returned, then it looks like Sky Army paid a nice bill for me to help protect you four."

George, Sapnap, and Bad gave him baffled stares, then broke into smiles of relief, tension flooding out of them as Sapnap threw out his arms to pull them both into hugs, cheering excitedly. Dream offered his own grin as well.

"Thanks, Techno," he murmured and the other Avatar dipped his head in acceptance.

"I'm a man of my word, Sky Army is aware of that. They ran a check on me after all," he remarked before tapping a finger against his nose. "There are some things I still need to talk to you all about, especially when it comes to Sky Army. But it'll have to wait until you're back to full strength. So rest up. We'll talk in the morning."

"This whole village is abandoned, so there's lots of room!" Bad told him brightly and Techno gave the group a small wave as he headed out to find a place to rest for the night as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Technoblade had been awake during the Viral Wars, so he has a little more information about things than the Dream Team/Muffinteers do, but still has gaps in his knowledge due to not being among the high ranks of Sky Army.
> 
> The events that George tells Techno will be shown in 7. Music.


	7. 7. Music

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the Creeper base is attacked, the Dream Team/Muffinteers move into an abandoned village, where listening to a mysterious singer in a jukebox triggers the power of the artifacts, with Dream paying the cost once paid by their original wielders...

7\. Music

The day after finding the Creeper head construct didn't fare as well as the group hoped. Sapnap had been able to go out and do a bit of mining, bringing back cobblestone and some iron ore to make a furnace and smelt it. BadBoyHalo and George were outside, chasing after Dream with wooden weapons to help him improve his dodging reaction times and evasion tactics. Or that was what they said they were doing; from the sounds of laughing and taunting that Sapnap heard, he was fairly sure they were just playing around.

It was a good sign at least, hearing Dream sound and act more like his usual self. The moments of blankness had been disconcerting, his silence there nothing at all like his usual focused quiet. What was especially worrying was how Dream kept brushing the moments off as just being tired or distracted; Sapnap was pretty sure something else was causing it. Side effect of sealing the Herobrine Virus, maybe?

He headed into the Creeper head, unloading extra items into the chest that he didn't need before making use of the workbench George had placed down. He traced around the outer edge of the crafting window with a fingertip, dragging cobblestone blocks along to lay them out in a box and create the furnace. With that crafted and set up, he placed it down and popped in the iron ore, then groaned in exasperation. He forgot coal.

Sapnap poked his head outside to yell at the three friends still bouncing around makeshift parkour pillars and piles of dirt. "Hey! Does anyone have some coal or wood? I need to cook iron!" he called out. He stood there, waiting, as Dream ran by and threw a few birch planks at him on his way to the other side of the clearing, Sapnap's auto item pickup snatching them up into his inventory. Moments later, Bad and George raced by, swords in the air.

"Dreeeaam! Come baaaaack! We just wanna tickle you with these swords!" they called and taunted.

Rolling his eyes good-naturedly, Sapnap shook his head and headed back inside to smelt the iron. There wasn't a lot of it, probably enough to make shields for Dream and George and give Bad an iron sword to replace the stone one. He had just finished crafting the shields when he heard panicked yelling from his friends outside, faint but still alarming.

"What the **hell**?" Sapnap muttered and yelled in shock as an explosion shook the building, part of the wall blasting open and knocking him over to the floor. He scrambled to his feet, blinking at the blast damage that took out the stonework and let dust drift around in clouds. "Crap, crap, _crap_ , what's going **on**?!" he muttered, abandoning the blocks in the makeshift base and running for the hole.

He skidded to a stop, taking in the sight of the battle in the clearing in horror. The red-cloaked girl had shown up again, laughing as she fired off arrows from her crossbow at George and Bad, the two struggling to dodge her shots while also fending off attacks from a pair of Illagers and zombies. Not far from them was Dream, who was evading another few Illagers and skeletons after the invaders had somehow managed to isolate him from the others. Sapnap flicked out his sword and shield and ran to join him, even as his skin crawled with an uneasy feeling of wrongness with what he was seeing.

It wasn't until he spotted Dream twisting out of an Illager's sudden tackle attempt that he caught on; the Illagers weren't trying to kill them **all** , but capture Dream alive. _Why?_ Sapnap leaped at the Illager before they could get up, sinking his sword into them and watching their body flash red before exploding into a cloud of particles. A flash of iron had him look aside in time to see Dream slam his axe down onto a skeleton that had been aiming for him.

"Watch your back, Sapnap!" the blonde yelled and turned to find the others. "George! Bad! We're coming! Just hold on!"

"Oh, _Dreeeeeam_ ~!" the red-cloaked girl sang out brightly, crossbow swinging to point at Sapnap. He cringed; hearing her in the taunting tone that was used playfully by the group of friends just added to the wrongness of the battle. "We're here to pick you up and take you back to the Nether Castle! Why aren't you helping us kill these lil simps following you around?"

"What?" Dream exclaimed incredulously, " **What?!** What makes you think I'd do **that**?!" He dodged another grab attempt and Sapnap moved to block further attempts, placing himself between the remaining mobs and the smaller Avatar as they ran to join George and Bad. The smaller shield he picked up in the Creeper head construct was easier to angle and direct, allowing Sapnap to keep moving while deflecting arrows and strikes from zombies. The mobs all wore red leather helmets to avoid burning in the sun. He glanced at the Illagers, noticing they also wore red leathers and robes. Was that significant?

"Gah! I'm low! I'm low!" George cried out, stumbling back from one particularly nasty hit from an Illager and clutching at his arm. "What the heck?! These mobs are taking more hits to put down!" He yelped as a zombie closed in to slash at him with an overhead swing of a sword. Dream darted in and held up the axe to catch the blade and hold it back.

"George! Use the bow!" the blonde yelled.

"I can't! I don't have any arrows and my wood sword broke!"

"My sword's gonna break soon too! Sapnap, do you have anything?! You got iron earlier!" Bad called out, shoving another Illager away with his shield then pivoting to stab his sword into a skeleton's ribs and throw it down. The brunet opened his inventory with a quick sweep of his hand, pulling out the iron sword to toss in his direction. Bad flicked his hand to empty it and grabbed the sword out of the air, bringing the blade down onto a Creeper. "Back up! Back up!" He brought up the shield and braced himself, facing the mob head on while the three behind him hurried to move further away.

The explosion threw Bad backwards and he landed on his back on the grass, dazed. Laughing at the sight, the red-cloaked Avatar waved her crossbow at them. "Man, it's no wonder your lose ratio against Dream is so high; you guys are **so** bad at this," she taunted.

"Hey! They're skilled and got strengths that I don't have and are always improving 'em! Step off my friends!" the blonde yelled, reaching up to pull his goggles over his face and tap the noseband. The white mask materialized into place and he startled a little before flipping the hood of his cloak up as well. " _Wha-?_ Uh, back off! And quit sending your weird mobs after us! What the **hell** do you **want**?!"

"What I want, is what **you** want!" the girl exclaimed, waving a hand around. " _C'mon!_ Why haven't you converted yet?! You should be on your way to the castle by now! Everyone's waiting for you to come back and give us orders on how to attack and destroy the Sky Army!" The mobs halted and looked back up at her, as though confused on what they should be doing now.

"This girl's nuttier than you were that time you got so excited over some achievement that you stripped and jumped naked over a ravine but missed and splatted like fifty blocks straight down," Sapnap grumbled under his breath.

"Dude, you said you wouldn't ever bring that up again, oh my **god** , what is _wrong_ with you?!" Dream hissed back at him.

A screen popped open in front of the red-cloaked Avatar and she blinked, leaning forward to read it. _**"Whaaaaaa-?!"**_ she screeched in frustration. "Why do you want me to go back _nowwwww_?! I'm about to get our Lord, he's **right** freaking **there**!" She flailed her hands in Dream's direction before gripping her head. "Aaaargh! Fine! If it's _sooooo_ important, I'll go back and see what it is!" she declared and tapped rapidly at the screen. With her crossbow hand, she waved at the mobs. "Fall back! We're getting new orders!"

And in a rush of feet, the mobs and Avatar ran back down the path into the woods and disappeared.

The group of friends just stood there, baffled. " **What?** " Dream asked in a flat tone.

With the Creeper head base damaged and compromised, the four Avatars continued on, following the path as the day crept into afternoon. They came across a few more ornate chests placed next to wooden wall structures and looted them for supplies, finding a few loaves of bread and apples, bundles of arrows that were given to George, and another Hunter's Armor shirt. That shirt was also given to George; Sapnap tried to hand it to Dream but the blonde refused, pointing out the stats on the armor would benefit the brunet with his bow most.

It wasn't long before they came across a wall with a gateway built to allow entry, with a village not far from it. The path wound from the gate into the village so they continued further, relieved to find possible shelter. But as the team explored the town, they quickly found that every house and shop was empty. Not a single villager could be found, and there was evidence that the population that had been there had fled in a hurry. Meals were still out on plates or spilled, doors unlocked, items knocked over or broken.

"Think this has to do with that weird ground shaking or the girl with the mobs?" Sapnap asked once the group gathered at the village fountain with their findings.

"Could be either, or both," Dream put in, the expression on his mask displaying lines for eyebrows furrowed thoughtfully, the smile still frozen in place. "There weren't any mob drops from zombies and skeletons or Illagers, but that could be because none of those got killed to drop something."

"The houses are still in good shape," George said, gesturing at the buildings. "This is basically an abandoned village now, with a working crop farm and animal pens. We can hide out here for now and go back to training Dream." Bad nodded, smiling in the shadows of his hood as he bounced in place.

"Yeah! I found a small mine entrance nearby, so we can search for resources there too!" he added. Sapnap raised a hand to cover his eyes as he looked skyward to check the time.

"It'll be night soon. May as well check for chests in the houses and pick one to stay in. We'll set our spawn points there so we don't end up in that tavern if we get memed," he said and looked among the houses. There was a comparatively large one set on a small hill and he pointed at it. "That one."

With that plan in place, they split up again to search the houses for loot, bringing back what they found to the house on the hill. Bad was especially excited for his find; two clocks, crafted contraptions made with gold, shimmered with a faint aura. He gave one to George. "This is good! Now we'll be protected against infection from the Virus!" he declared brightly.

" _Dude_ ," Sapnap whined, tilting his head at Dream meaningfully. The blonde's mask just made an awkward expression, tiny half circles for eyes to show them as closed, while he just chuckled at them.

"Guys, it's fine. I think it's a great idea. We have gold bars anyway for piglin trading, but a clock we can hang on to and it's useful," he said, waving a hand dismissively. He pointed at the bread and apples piled on the kitchen table. "Let's just eat and unwind a bit before bed."

They split the food and scattered around the den in the house, warming themselves by the campfires placed in the red brick fireplace and growing comfortable and sleepy. George tapped at a screen he had opened over the Hunter's Armor, studying the scrolling code as he munched on an apple. Bad had a chat screen open, typing messages to Skeppy to keep in touch. Dream sat on a couch closest to the fireplace, the mask hiding his expression as he pulled small chunks of bread from the loaf in his hand and ate them almost mechanically. Sapnap prodded at a jukebox in hopes of a disc before leaving it to flop down beside him.

"Hell of a day, huh, Dream?" he sighed tiredly, slouching down and letting his legs stretch out.

"Uh huh."

"The shine on the clocks isn't very bright, but it'll work still. Personally, I don't think we need them since you're fine," Sapnap went on with a careless shrug, glancing over at the silent blonde. "The artifacts are doing all the work and since we're close by, it's like they're protecting us too. Right?"

"Uh huh."

Sapnap rolled his eyes as he sat up and reached over to flick his fingers against the mask, right between the eyes. The black dots became little circles in surprise as Dream yelped. "C'mon, you've been doing this ever since you woke up back at that village in the spruce forest," he pointed out as George and Bad looked over at them both in concern. "You're spacing out a lot. What's wrong? Don't hide stuff from us; we're your friends."

Dream sighed, tapping the mask to make it dematerialize into the goggles. He pushed those to the top of his head and looked at each of his friends, taking in their worried expressions. "I..," he began, the struggle to stay focused visible on his face, "don't.. _know_. There's.. there's like a pressure, like in my head, but not? And it doesn't feel **bad** but it's not _right_." His words started off slow but then sped up, as though he were rushing to get sentences out before he could space out again. "I don't know what's causing it. Maybe something with the artifacts? I don't _**know**_." Dream shook his head, looking into the flames of the campfires and biting his lip before hugging himself. "Am I going to be like **this** from now on? Because of the Herobrine Virus?" he asked with a broken laugh.

Bad wilted in place, giving George and Sapnap helpless looks, as though hoping one of them could somehow make things better. George got up from his spot on the floor, raising his glasses to his head as he took a seat on the other side of the green-clothed Avatar. He waited for Sapnap to pull Dream into a hug, then pressed in to sandwich him in the group hug, pressing his face to the back of Dream's shoulder. After a few minutes, Bad got up and headed upstairs to the bedrooms, then returned with a blanket that he draped over the three huddled together.

"It's gonna be okay. We'll figure something out," he murmured, ruffling Dream's hair a little before heading back up the stairs for bed.

In the morning, Sapnap took over the kitchen to cook the beef George brought in from the cows that had been penned outside. Some eggs were collected and those were cracked open and sizzling in a pan, courtesy of a mod that added more items and recipes in relation to cooking food. Bad sorted through the supplies they had on hand that were dumped into a double chest in the den, taking note of what was available and what they needed to replenish.

"George, after you multiply the cows, bring back some of that wheat so we can make bread!" the demonic Avatar called out the window. George waved at him from the pens, the remaining cows all bumping into each other in a cloud of hearts.

"Bad, don't yell outside like that. What if someone hears you? We're trying to lay low, remember?" Sapnap told him with a laugh. Bad grinned from his place at the window.

"Aw, we're thousands of blocks away from the big city! Nobody's gonna find us or know we're here," he replied, throwing his arms up in a cheer. The two of them continued bickering playfully until Dream came down the stairs from the second floor, yawning and ruffling damp hair with one hand. "Ah! Gooood morning, Dream! Are you feeling better today?" Bad greeted, hopping to his feet.

"Yeah, a lil bit," Dream replied in a mumble. "Bath helped. Good morning." Sapnap grinned, tilting his head.

"Still so cute," he said and held up his hands when Dream whipped his head around to squint at him. "I said, good morning! Ready to eat?" The blonde nodded and trudged over to the table, plopping himself down in a chair and rubbing at his face to try and wake himself up more. Bad scampered off to call George in for breakfast while Sapnap plated out servings and set them on the table. "You know the rules, I cooked so you wash dishes after." Dream nodded, picking up the fork to start in on the eggs and beef with a quiet _'Thanks'_ for the food.

Once Bad and George joined in, the four Avatars ate and talked over what to do about the Virus sealed within Dream. They couldn't keep the artifacts forever, not when Minecraftia still depended on them to increase its immunity level and stabilize protections against the Virus.

"We should talk to Fundy," George suggested while Dream collected the dishes and headed to the makeshift sink made out of cauldrons and slabs to wash them. "The Virus is coding, just like the rest of us. Herobrine's files must be mixed up in the data around Dream's Core File. Fundy and his Player are super in the know about coding in Minecraft and here, so maybe they can figure out how to separate Herobrine from Dream."

"Ooh, that's a good idea! We should message him and ask for help," Bad agreed, hopping up from his seat to help dry and put away the plates that Dream stacked on a slab. "Where is he living now? Hopefully not too far away."

"Last I heard from Fundy, he was doing some experiments with redstone in an extreme hills biome northwest from Sky Capital," Dream said and dried his hands on his cloak. "From what I remember about the map room in the Sky Army HQ, that biome's like thirty thousand blocks away. It took us like, what, a week and a half to travel about seven thousand blocks?" He threw his arms up as he walked into the den, followed by the others. "So we'd be traveling for at least a month to get to him. A **month**! I don't want to have this asshole Virus in **my** body for a **month**! I don't even want Him one more _day_!"

"Language," Bad said quietly and blinked as the jukebox hummed. "Uh, guys? Did anyone put a disc in the jukebox?" The chatter halted as everyone focused on the jukebox, suspicious of the hum.

\---

_[Systems check running.]_

_[Systems check interrupted. Reason: override by Sysop SkythekidRS.]_

_[Sysop Command: run systems immunization check.]_

_[..Systems immunization at 65%]_

_[Sysop Command: run systems immunization protocol.]_

_[Running systems immunization.]_

_[Accessing Sky Hub Orbital Sanctuary.]_

_[Link to Sysop SkythekidRS.]_

_[ **Error**. Reason: Sysop SkythekidRS unable to verify Vaccine activation.]_

_[Sysop Command: Traceback Vaccine module via ping sent by Sysop SkythekidRS.]_

_[Traceback running. Listening....]_

\---

Dream flinched slightly at the stream of words that scrolled up his field of vision briefly. He barely had time to wonder over what that was when the music started. _"I'd heard there was a secret chord that David played and it pleased the Lord, but you don't really care for music, do ya?"_ a voice sang softly from the jukebox. His breath hitched and he moved towards the box almost unconsciously, his mouth moving to follow the words in silence before he joined in with singing along.

 _"Well, it goes like this, the fourth, the fifth; the minor fall, the major lift! The baffled King composing Hallelujah!"_ Dream's voice rose and fell in volume, matching the unknown voice in the jukebox. The smiley face clasp shone brighter, light radiating further outward.

\---

_[Traceback complete.]_

_[Found: Speed-Class NewGen Avatar, designation: Dream.]_

_[Link to Dream.]_

_[Testing....]_

_[Link established.]_

_[Register Dream as Anti-Viral. Reassigning Vaccine module.]_

_[Resuming systems immunization.]_

\---

"What the **hell** is going on?" Sapnap muttered as he and the others stared in awe. Their inventory screens suddenly opened and each looked down in surprise. "What the-?" Sapnap's fingers traced over the icons in the screen, trying to find what could have caused it to open without his command, until he stopped at the clock that he had carried from home. It was pulsing with light in time with the music as the song went on so he pulled it out to check it. The gold frame of the clock shimmered brightly with the immunizing aura.

"It's recharging!" George exclaimed, holding out his own clock as light poured out from Dream's clasp and sank into the three clocks, drifting around in sparkling motes that sought out more items made of gold ore. "Is it because Dream is singing? Is singing the way to activate the artifacts?"

Dream went on following the words and melody, keeping pace despite not matching the skill level of the mystery singer, almost as though he was mesmerized by the song. Finally, the song wound to a close, and the last of the shimmering light faded into the air, dissipating into Minecraftia itself.

\---

_[Server immunization at 100%]_

_[Terminating link to Dream.]_

_[Terminating link to Sysop SkythekidRS.]_

_[Resuming normal functions.]_

\---

_"Gehk!"_ Dream choked out, gasping and clutching at his chest as a surge of heat blazed through him, searing pain radiating out and making his head pound. He collapsed in place, dimly aware of his friends diving for him with cries of alarm and panic. What was _happening_? Why did every part of him **hurt** so **much**? He twisted and writhed, screaming and sobbing while the burning consumed his senses.

When he felt his consciousness fade, he welcomed it with relief.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dream's constant spacing out was due to the artifacts trying and failing to perform their other abilities. They weren't properly assigned to him and he wasn't registered as an Anti-Viral until Minecraftia's systems was able to make the connection with Sky's help. Once the registration is completed, the artifacts are able to immunize others as well as keep Herobrine sealed and contained, which they weren't doing when they were first placed on Dream because they didn't recognize him, just recognized the Herobrine Virus code within him. So the sealing worked, but the immunizing aura didn't.
> 
> Edit: Slipped my mind that Sapnap already has a clock, so slight alteration made in the number of clocks Bad finds.


	8. 6. Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SkythekidRS and Deadlox return to find not all is what it seems with Sky Army and the news of the stolen artifacts. Meanwhile, the Cultists have gained inside information and shifted tactics to respond, sending Stacy and a squad of agents out to find and bring back Dream and his friends one way or another.

6\. Game

_[SkythekidRS joined the game.]_

_[Deadlox joined the game.]_

Seeing the notifications in the local area chat had the reaction of high-level Recruits running around and frantically getting things ready in the Central Chamber of Sky Hub Orbital Sanctuary. Some froze in place, watching the doors that led into the chamber with hope shining in their eyes. Others yelled at them, reminding them that it would take time still for them to show up. After all, Sky and Deadlox had been in self-exile for a few years and needed to be briefed on all that had happened since they last walked Minecraftia. They also had to be brought up to speed on the theft of their artifacts and the potential return of Herobrine.

The Avatars in question walked down the hallway towards the Central Chamber, having emerged from their rooms after several days of back to back briefings and meetings with the current division leaders and their immediate staff. There had been a lot of information to process and sort through but finally it was time to actively work on the situation. The brunet dressed in black and dark gray armor murmured softly to his russet-haired companion, a conversation in a low enough volume that it'd be difficult to eavesdrop on.

"Maybe it's just me being out of touch since we've been gone, but does it feel like there's something going on behind the scenes that's being hidden from us?" Sky asked, sunglasses covering his eyes and scanning for any amount of infection in their surroundings.

"Nah, I mean, I'm feelin' it too," Deadlox agreed, mouth barely moving as he spoke, his visible scarlet eye searching the hall to track potential ambush points and hiding spots. "Our shit gets stolen but no one knows by who or how to go about getting it back? Herobrine could be back but the info's buried and the combat division gets sent to block access to the Nether? The code research division is playing with the data from those arrows that were linked to Herobrine's source code? What the hell is **that**? What do they think they can do with **that**?"

The doors to the Central Chamber opened, admitting the Butter King and the Dead Army General into the sphere of obsidian, blue concrete, glass, and gold. It had long been emptied of non-essential Avatars after preparations for system-wide immunizing were complete. Sky looked around, then threw up his arms with a frustrated yell.

_"WHAT THE HELL, SKY ARMY?!"_

Deadlox raised an eyebrow at him, walking past to reach the central pillar of gold blocks and leaning back against it.

"War's over, so it's stupid weird that there's this distance between them and us," he remarked, arms folding over his chest. "You're the leader, everyone loves you; so what's with this feel like Recruits are keeping secrets from **you**?"

"Dunno, but first things first, gotta check on the server immunization level," Sky sighed harshly, swiping a hand in front of himself to open the command screen and run the check. "Hm, 65% immunity. And the artifacts were gone for about a week and a half.. that's a hell of a drop." Sky squinted at the lines of text scrolling by as he exhaled slowly and gave a mental command to open access to his Core File for Minecraftia to connect and confirm his status as an Anti-Viral Avatar.

It bounced back with an error.

"The **fuck** is _this_ shit?" Sky muttered, tilting his head at the screen. Deadlox rolled his eyes and pushed away from the pillar to approach him and read the data himself.

"God, you're such an idiot. It's trying to verify you have the amulet; that's the Vaccine module. It won't accept the fake one you're wearing," he pointed out, deadpan expression unchanging as his best friend groaned. "Think it'll work if you just have Minecraftia pull from your personal immunity?"

"Maybe," Sky said and scratched at his chin thoughtfully, "but I wonder... The amulet and headset were stolen, yeah? But the Cultists haven't made any moves, and I'm not seeing any influence or infection from Herobrine spread anywhere within render distance. What if our shit is just being held somewhere? I could have the system look for it by broadcasting the Sky Song into everything that can hold it or the immunization aura and see if the amulet activates and sends its aura back into the network to here."

Deadlox blinked and shrugged. "It'd let us know coords at least," he agreed simply. Sky issued the command for the system to follow his song and seek out the amulet responding to it before stepping forward to sing. "And if someone's wearing it, we'll get the name of the ass we need to kick," Deadlox added with a breathy chuckle.

A few minutes later, Sky was punching the pillar and yelling unintelligibly while Deadlox studied the hologram of the Avatar in possession of both their artifacts. "What is it with these Viruses going after Speed Class Avatars? It's **stupid** , I don't get it, if He wants to destroy shit, He should have picked a Power Class; this guy looks like if you breathe on him hard enough, you can knock him onto his ass," he muttered under his breath.

" _Goddammit_! He was supposed to be **dead**!" Sky raged, head and fists pressed to the blocks of gold that gleamed with the immunization aura. "After everything we suffered, all we fought for and almost died for, Herobrine was supposed to **never** be able to take a host ever again! What the **fuck**?!"

"Least this guy's Anti-Viral now; that's good. You can trigger the immunizing protocol here, let this Dream guy carry out the actual vaccine part, and then let people think you did it yourself," Deadlox said thoughtfully, hands slipping into his pockets. Sky turned his head to stare at him in confusion. The russet-haired Avatar sighed and brought the hologram over as he walked to the brunet. "You're the Commander here, think it out," he said dryly. "The council knows that Herobrine's code found a host. They also know the artifacts were stolen. They think the two are connected, but in the wrong way." He gestured at the hologram dressed in green. "This guy is tagged as the new Herobrine Anti-Viral, which means he's got Herobrine's code inside him and he's wearing your amulet to generate the aura."

" _Shit_ , the artifacts weren't stolen to let Herobrine be reborn; they were stolen to keep Him from doing to **this** guy what He did to **me**!" Sky realized, tanned skin paling at the implications. "But Zip and TrueMU hired somebody to go and get them back; if the artifacts are taken away from Dream, there won't be anything to stop Him from Awakening **in** Dream!" He looked from the hologram to Deadlox, mind racing over possible paths to take. "We can't let anyone know about this," Sky finally said, eyes widening at the implications of his own words. "I.. I don't think we can trust Sky Army as it is now." He gripped his hair with one hand, backstepping a few paces in disbelief. "My Recruits, my Army, wha-.. what _happened_ to them? Why can't I _trust_ them?"

"They're the ones hiding shit first," Deadlox returned, gesturing to dismiss the hologram. He reached out to gently punch Sky's arm. "C'mon. Technically, we're still at peace time, so TP is disabled but..." he trailed off meaningfully.

"But I'm Sysop; all commands are always on for me," Sky murmured, determined expression forming on his face as the two Avatars walked side by side to leave the Central Chamber. "I need to gather some supplies and draft a book with some of my experiences as an Anti-Viral so this Dream can have a reference for what to expect. Can't leave right away, there's too many eyes on me, but hopefully in a few days I can use RepliCraft to leave a decoy here and get to him first, before Zip's hired mercenary picks up his trail."

"Remind me to make sure my first words to this Dream kid are 'One of us, one of us'," Deadlox said with a wry smirk.

\---

Stacy kicked open the doors to the debriefing room in the Nether Castle with a roar of frustration. "Kothraaaaaa! I was _soooo_ close to getting my hands on Dream! What was **so** important that I had to ditch Herobrine's new body?" The Avatar in question was glaring at his own screen. She walked up to him, hands on her hips, and huffed. "Well?"

"SkythekidRS and Deadlox have joined the game," Kothra finally said in a flat voice, flicking a screenshot image map onto a wall of item frames to display the whole image. The figures of the original Anti-Viral Avatars appeared in the image a short distance away from the spy that took the screenshot. Their backs were turned but other members of the council were giving them obvious deferential treatment, confirming them to be the real deal.

The cluster of Cultists gathered in the room fell into silence before looking at one another worriedly. Stacy's hands flew up to her head as she let out a cry of alarm. "What?! _Noooo!_ We're not **ready** to face those guys! And what if they find Dream first?! Those idiots will ruin _everything_! That's not _faaaaair_!" she wailed.

"What are we going to do? We need Lord Herobrine back right away! He's still out in the Overworld. He hasn't finished taking over His new body; is something wrong? We gotta get out there and find Him, help Him revive Himself!" the others began chattering amongst themselves.

"The spy network is already spreading out to try and find out what information is being given to Sky but they haven't been able to breach the meeting room where those conversations take place," Kothra told them, scrolling through his screen. "However, there's reports that a large sum of emeralds was taken from the treasury by Logdotzip and signed as being for reconstruction of Sky Tower Alpha's artifact chamber. That raises questions as to why it needs reconstruction. There's no word on if the artifacts were moved to another location."

"Ugh, well that's just **great** ," Stacy groaned. She threw up her hands and flopped back into a chair near the other Cultists. "What other bad news do you have?"

Kothra scrolled a bit more, reading the report to himself. "Looks like one of the code researchers in Sky Army's going rogue on them. There's a mission order that one of the spies got hold of that calls for a small group of agents to find Lord Herobrine's vessel and bring them back to their lab in secret." He kept reading, his expression growing dark. "They managed to reverse engineer the traceback function on the arrows; they're following the Herobrine Compass."

" _Whaaaaaaa-_?!" Stacy exclaimed with the others in shock. "Sky Army's got their **own** Herobrine Compass?! But that's **our** thing!" She pulled out her own compass, checking the diamond ringed device. The word 'Overworld' floated over the glass, confirming the last known position of the new host. "What the **hell**? Sky Army's all gung-ho over trying to delete Herobrine, so why's this researcher trying to bring him in alive? Are they turning to our side?"

"The agents are looking into it but I recommend getting hold of Him first, just to be safe. For everyone tracking the vessel, we need to shift tactics," Kothra ordered. "There are Recruits stationing themselves around public access Nether portals and some of the wild portals outside cultivated lands. We're going to keep their attention focused on those portals with skirmishes. I want them so busy trying to keep fresh Recruits going there, there won't be any thought to send more after the vessel." He looked to Stacy, who straightened up with wide eyes. "Stacy, I'm sending you out with a squadron of agents to get to the vessel and bring him back here via the Grand Portal. If you have trouble, capture his friends. Use them against him; at best, he'll come to us to save them, at worst, he won't and we'll just convert them and add three more swords to our side."

" _Cool~_ ," Stacy breathed with a wide smile, eyes bright with her new status of squad leader.

"Remember your orders this time; get the vessel or capture his friends to get to him, kill anyone else that comes after the vessel, bring them back here with the Grand Portal. Do **not** get followed," Kothra told her firmly, then looked at the other Cultists. "You all have your orders. Dismissed."

The room cleared and Kothra cleaned up the image from the wall. As he pulled the last image map down, a new message flickered into his vision. He paused to bring up his chat window again, staring at the update to the report.

_[poxnlox whispers to you: Server immunity back to full. Amulet used. No word on location still.]_

_[LadyDragon whispers to you: Strange weapons and builds are being discovered. Not modded. Lost half my unit to a dungeon full of mobs. Mobs are enchanted. Not armor. Mobs!]_

"What the **hell** is going on?" Kothra breathed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any similarities between OC names and real Minecraft account names are coincidental and unintentional.


	9. 4. Charm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the Dream Team/Muffinteers continue their journey westward, George comes across an artifact that didn't quite make a clean transition from Dungeons to Minecraftia.

4\. Charm

Dream scowled at the pile of weapons and armor that were collected over the span of three days. There were rapiers, broadswords, daggers, spears, crossbow pairs, war-axes; pretty much anything and everything that wasn't just the vanilla weaponry found in Minecraft. Mobs spawned around the village wielding them during the night, and the group of Avatars took to fighting them to gather the items and learn what other changes took place in Minecraftia.

"Yoink. This is mine now. This is going to make so many orphans. _So_ many orphans," Technoblade remarked with a grin, pulling a rapier from the pile and opening the item screen to look it over. "I can already imagine all the content I'm going to make with this on Youtube." Sapnap rummaged through the pile himself, pulling out one of the more unique looking axes to look over.

"Maybe instead of crafting weapons, we should hang onto our iron and stuff to repair these with?" he wondered aloud. "Feels like these will do more damage to mobs in the future."

"Those Endermen gave off some weird new effect," George muttered and shivered in place. "I didn't like it. I already have a hard enough time with not being able to see color, I don't need static added on top of it!" Dream scooted close by and threw an arm across his shoulders to comfort him. "Least I got this interesting charm off of it," the brunet added with a small smile, showing off an amulet to the masked boy. "It says it has a Life Boost enchantment. Guess that's also new to Minecraftia."

The mask had taken on a new effect after Dream recovered from the bizarre reality that a song burned a piece of his soul to give immunization to the whole server somehow. Now and then he'd see a glow of red on something, a patch of ground or a mob, and he'd feel the urge to go and walk over the ground or kill the mob. Once, instead of just wandering away to the grass blocks, Dream hummed the first melody that came to mind, which happened to be the chase music used so often in the Manhunt videos his Player, Clay, recorded. The red immediately shrank and faded away. So bizarre, but something new to keep in mind.

He brought it up to Technoblade and the kingly Avatar gave him an unreadable look before explaining that what he was seeing was the spread of infection by the Herobrine Virus left over from the Viral Wars, spread now by infected mobs and Cultists. The song blocked further infection, but if something was already in place, it needed cleansing. Another song was once used to do exactly that, restore and repair, but since Dream was the one with the artifacts, something more attuned to him had taken over the job.

Now, there was _another_ new thing the mask was showing him as George held the pretty blue charm in his hands. Flickers of 0s and 1s passed over the charm's surface, as if attempting to shove binary code out of itself into the free-flowing data that allowed Minecraftia to support the game menus and commands. It sort of made him think of it as a...

"I think that charm's glitched, George," Dream finally said, pressing fingers to the mask to let it pixelate away into his goggles. "The mask reacted weird to it. What're the stats on it?" He peered at the window George brought up with a flick of his fingers. "300 health healed. 5 second cooldown. +1 Soul Gathering. Requires souls. Enchanted with Life Boost; each time you expend a life, your maximum health increases 33%," he read aloud and tilted his head. "What the hell does **that** mean? Soul gathering? Requires souls? What souls? Ours?"

"I'm guessing it harvests the souls of mobs you kill while wearing it," Technoblade answered drily, his fur-lined cape set aside while he pulled on armor that looked like it was crafted with wolf fur. "If it's glitched, you might wanna toss it in lava, just to be safe."

George immediately held the charm closer to himself in protest. "What? No! I like it! It's such a pretty blue and it might be fun to look into the code for it." He looped the cord around his neck and admired his new treasure in the light of the campfires in the fireplace.

"It also says it's supposed to be cold to the touch," Dream added and the brunet shook his head.

"This feels warm. Here, feel it!" he returned, leaning close to the green-cloaked Avatar and lifting the charm.

"I'm not feeling you up, George! Haha! You haven't bought me dinner first! Like you gotta take me out on a date before _that_!"

"What?! **No** , that's **not** what I-! Why do you **say** things like that?!"

"How do you know so much about what's going on with Dream?" Sapnap asked Technoblade, ignoring the playful bickering nearby. Bad sat with them, organizing his hotbar with a few of the new weapons.

"Same thing happens with SkythekidRS," Techno replied, pulling the cape on over the armor. "Perks of being an Anti-Viral Avatar; you see stuff others can't, you're motivated to fix it, and you burn your soul in agony while doing it. Can't imagine why more Avatars don't sign up for it." He gestured towards him, Bad, and George. "But with you guys supporting him, helping him through this? He'll be alright. You've got his back the same way he's got yours."

"Yeah! Of course we do! Because we're the Four Muffinteers!" Bad declared and nodded decisively with Sapnap. The athlete grinned. It was true, through any hardship that came their way, he and George and Dream powered through together, and when others joined them, like Bad and Techno, they were swept up in that tidal wave of friendship as well. An unstoppable force when they put themselves to it.

A blur of green and blue swept down between them as George tackled Dream to the floor, the blonde laughing to the point of wheezing. _"George!"_ he yelled between cackles, "Not in **front** of everyone! We have rooms upstairs, y'know!"

_"I'm going to kill you!"_ George yelled, face flushed pink and struggling between maintaining a false scowl and breaking into as wide a smile as Dream's. Technoblade looked down at the two of them, then up at Sapnap.

"Our chances of surviving this look pretty good to me," he remarked and flicked his hand to some food on his hotbar. "Potato?"

\---

There was one final check on their supplies in the morning as the group prepared to leave the village. Dream had hesitated for a few minutes before deciding to take the beds and furnaces from the house they had stayed in, stowing them in his backpack. He gave the jukebox one last distrustful glare before leaving the house, the door clicking shut behind him echoing hollowly into the now empty and bereft den.

Technoblade opted to walk with the team as they left the village behind, his horse on a lead that he wrapped around his shield arm. "Are you _absolutely_ **sure** Fundy is in a biome northwest of the capital?" he asked Dream as the path they walked eventually ended in unbroken grass, the forest giving way to plains. "You can't read maps, Dream. Was the biome at the top of the page and to the left or the right? Is up north, Dream?"

"I don't **know**! Sapnap has a map, look at that!" Dream exclaimed, throwing his arms up in exasperation, his mask back in place.

"This map's only good to get us to a woodland mansion that's west from here," Sapnap retorted, flapping the paper at the blonde. "We're pretty much on our own from there."

"Why are we going to a woodland mansion anyway?" George asked with a tilt of his head.

"Because it's in the same direction as we were going when we left the city."

" _Hanh?_ " Techno grunted, giving Sapnap and George a suspicious look. "You're telling me the **only** reason we're going west is because **that's** the direction you four ran in to escape getting caught with the artifacts you stole?" He gestured wildly around the plains ringed with distant forests and hills. "You couldn't have gone north?! Or south?!"

"It was the closest exit we could find. We were kind of in a panic," Bad admitted with a sheepish laugh, rubbing his head. Techno's shoulders dropped as he sighed heavily.

"I don't think Sky Army paid me enough for this," he said in deadpan with Dream wheezing beside him, the green-cloaked Avatar hugging himself to try and contain his laughter.

The sun passed on overhead as they traveled past tall grass and patches of flowers. Small pauses were made to collect food from wild cows, sheep, pigs, and chickens that spawned sporadically around them. Shallow caves and holes in the ground exposed small amounts of coal and iron that were quickly gathered. The additional supplies did wonders for boosting morale, and meals at night were full of cheer as the Avatars ate well on cooked meats and baked potatoes and bread.

Rotating the night watch gave each Avatar a chance to try out their new weapons and learn about the changes to their bars and heart meters made when they equipped the items from Dungeons. Bad and Sapnap eagerly shared stories of the power of their new sword and axe, amazed by the amount of damage dealt in the form of small numbers that floated in their vision over the hostile mobs. George showed off the eerie soft glow of his charm, the Soul Healer, explaining his new knowledge that it drained souls from the mobs he killed and stored it in the square blue gem on the charm, liquid light that rocked back and forth gently as he moved.

Dream kept silent about his turns as night watch. The one time he was prodded into sharing his experience, he smiled and tilted his head, the mask hiding his eyes from them only staring with a matching smile. "It was interesting," he admitted vaguely. "I learned some stuff. Could be useful but I need to think on it more."

Grass eventually gave way to the flattened yellow path blocks that were a sign a village was nearby. Bad clapped his hands together in relief.

"Oh, that's such a nice thing to see! We can get some rest in real beds and resupply on crafting materials," he declared, running ahead to see the village first. Sapnap scratched his head, thinking it over and weighing the pros and cons of staying in a populated place for a while.

"If it helps, my contacts in Sky Army say that information about the artifacts being gone is being suppressed. No one knows it was you four specifically and no one knows they're even missing," Techno said suddenly, his chat window open in front of him as he moved his fingers to type responses and scroll around the messages. "Far as anyone knows, I'm still totally lost trying to find those dastardly thieves. Oh, woe is Technoblade, he can't find the thieves, there goes his plan for easy content, subscribe to Technoblade anyway." His monotone plea for views set Dream off again, the smaller Avatar wheezing and leaning on George for support to keep moving forward.

"Thanks, Techno, that helps a lot," Sapnap said with a grin. He looked forward, walking on in the lead as the kingly Avatar stayed as rear guard, walking and reading messages.

The village was bustling with activity in the afternoon hours. A thriving open-air market was full of colorful stands built of wood, cobblestone, and dyed wool, all featuring different kinds of goods for sale and trade by villagers and Avatars alike. Some stalls even had selections of the new weapons and items on display. Dream and Bad both looked towards the market eagerly, so the group looked for the first inn that had rooms and a stable. At the price quoted, all eyes looked to Technoblade, who stared back at them before sighing and opening his inventory to pull a portion of his payment.

With rooms secured and the horse set up in the stable, an Avatar with rainbow skin working to bring hay bales and apples to feed the animals, the group headed out to check the market. Extra raw meat was sold to make back a few emeralds, which were immediately spent on tents for future camping. George marveled over the fabric and poles.

"These are really cool. Dungeons might be making stuff harder but it's brought a lot of really useful stuff here," he remarked, putting the tent into his inventory. They walked on, loosely scattered but still within sight of each other.

"Oh, that's a super cool looking artifact!" a voice called out and the five Avatars tensed subtly. Eyes flicked towards Dream, who had already shifted his weight in an easy movement, one hand drifting to a post that formed part of the support to a stall's awning and gripping it in a deliberately careless gesture. His face still hidden by the mask made it impossible to tell where his gaze fell. Still, it seemed almost unnecessary, as the voice was closer to George and the brunet spotted a purple-haired Avatar waving at him from a stall full of other charms. "Yeah, hi!" they greeted again, "Come over!"

Warily, George walked up to the stall, looking over the numerous charms before giving the seller a questioning look. "What is it?" he asked. The seller smiled brightly and gestured towards the charm hanging around his neck.

"That artifact looks really cool; I haven't seen that one before. My shop buys, sells, and trades these new items that appeared in Minecraftia recently and I was wondering if you might be interested in selling that charm," they said cheerfully, spreading their arms to show off the numerous unique items. "I'll give you twenty emeralds for it. Fair deal?"

"No, thanks, I'm not interested in selling," George returned awkwardly, eyes darting around in hopes of rescue from the situation.

"How about twenty-five? You can buy a lot of supplies with that much money, honey," the seller crooned, batting their eyes at him sweetly.

"No, no, really, I'm fine. Thank you, but no."

"Okay, okay, how about thirty-five? But _only_ because you're a cutie!" The seller pressed on, eyes sparkling as they clasped their hands together.

George opened his mouth, ready to stammer out another polite rejection, only to have his view of the seller cut off by Dream's figure sliding between them with a silent speed honed by hours of manhunt training. The masked Avatar looked down at the startled seller, mouth set in a relaxed neutral line that somehow made the smiling face on the mask more intimidating than friendly.

"My friend said he wasn't interested. No means no," he said in a calmly detached tone. The eyes of the mask flickered magenta so quickly George could only blink and wonder if he'd simply imagined it. "Simple concept to grasp. Do we have an understanding?" The seller nodded slowly, wide eyes fixed on the mask. "Good. Have a nice rest of the day," Dream finished, his voice never changing from the emotionless tone. He turned and walked away. George swallowed hard, hand gripping the Soul Healer charm, before hurrying to follow after him.

The group decided to return to the inn and call it a day after that.


	10. 33. Midnight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The dangers of living in a village is the occasional raid from Illagers. For many Avatars, this is their first encounter with Dungeons mechanics seeping into Minecraftia...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trying to think like Dream in thinking up traps gave me a headache. Kinda not looking forward to doing more of the same in future entries, lol.

33\. Midnight *

The dining room of the inn was packed with people, mainly Avatars who had traveled from distant towns and cities to do trade and gather resources to deliver elsewhere. There was a lot of gossip and information trading going on, from where to find specific biomes to plans for a raid on a nearby Illager outpost that had been constructed some days ago. Finding a place to sit and eat had been difficult, but the group managed to secure a table in a corner of the room to have a meal. Rabbit stew, steaks, baked potatoes, cups of juice and water, and warm loaves of fresh bread were served out. Technoblade counted out the amount spent as Sapnap spread his map on the table for everyone to look at.

"You guys are worse than Tommy; you're going to spend **all** my money and I haven't even had it for two weeks," the kingly Avatar complained.

"Okay, so, at the pace we're going and according to the size of our icons on the map, we should be in range of the woodland mansion in another week," Sapnap began, words only a bit distorted by his munching on bread. He tapped a finger on the white dot on the map edge and moved it towards the mansion icon on the sepia paper. "We can get Totems of Undying from the Evokers. If we're lucky, they'll have a map room and we can see a lot more of the biomes there." He grinned at the masked Avatar chewing on a chunk of rabbit from his stew, "Maybe even see if Dream knows which way is northwest."

"Leave me _alooooone_!" Dream groaned, sliding down his seat while George laughed quietly beside him.

"We've got new weapons, armor, and shields. But that one seller with the charms had a point; we could probably take a look at the kinds of artifacts that got found," BadBoyHalo suggested. He lowered his voice and drifted a gesture in Dream's direction. "If all of us have artifacts on, then Dream's clasp won't stand out too much. People will think it's just a really unique item that came from Dungeons."

George's face had a strange expression cross over it as he sat back in his seat, arms folding over his chest. "Uh, you guys can go there and get some, if you want. Me and Dream can look for other supplies like spare armor or some enchanting books and potions," he said as the blonde sat back up and nodded in agreement.

"Alright, so in the morning we get the last of our supplies, artifacts and potions, and then we go back to traveling," Technoblade summarized, soaking the last of his stew into his bread and eating it with a pleased look on his face.

They finished up dinner and headed upstairs to their rooms, bidding one another good night. George flopped onto one bed as Dream headed into a smaller, connected room. "All this walking _suuuuucks_!" he groaned loud enough to be heard over the sound of water splashing in the other room. "Why can't we have TP on?"

"Cuz we're not at war, officially," Dream called out from his bath. "Minecraftia's using the SkyDoesMinecraft server as its anchor, so we're going by its rules. If Sky Army hasn't declared war, then the commands that would be useful for wartime stay disabled except for specific things."

"Like those teleport stations run by Recruits in the big towns and cities?" George asked, rolling over to stare up at the ceiling.

"Yeah."

George sat up and set his glasses aside on the bedside table with a soft sigh. Since the encounter with the artifact seller, the memory of that flicker of magenta light in the mask's eyes wouldn't stop repeating in his mind. Had he really seen it? Or was he just imagining it? The other charms must have reflected light onto the mask, right?

"Bath's free," Dream suddenly said, and George startled out of thought at hearing his voice so close. The blonde gave him a concerned look while still running his hands through his hair to air it out. The goggles hung around his neck alongside the clasp in medallion form, their soft glow faint against the green of his shirt. "You alright, George? Now **you're** the one spacing out."

The artifacts glowed faintly violet. So why did he see magenta light from the mask's eyes?

"George?" The brunet shook his head, refocusing on the here and now again in time to see Dream's face inches from his own. He yelped, turning bright pink as he grabbed a pillow and shoved it into Dream's face, knocking him over and onto the floor.

" _Dream!_ What are you **doing**?!" he yelled at the boy floundering about wildly. There was banging on the wall from next door, the faint sound of Sapnap yelling at them to keep it down. George rolled his eyes and crawled across the beds placed together to get to the bathroom himself. "Ugh, never mind. I'm going to take a bath. Go to _bed_ , Dream."

The sounds of several hunting horns blaring woke the group abruptly. George sat up with a gasp as Dream rolled out of bed and crashed to the floor again, kicking at the blankets in frustration. "What is that?! A **raid**? _Here?_ _**Now?!**_ " he asked rapidly, groping for his glasses. "Dream! What's happening?!" Doors slammed open and shut, and the two Avatars made their way to a window to look outside and see what was happening.

A large group of Illagers and their companion mobs rushed into the village from the direction of the outpost. Ravagers trampled over small constructs and farms, ridden by Pillagers who fired arrows from crossbows at anything that moved. Avatars had already rushed out to fight them off, villagers scrambling to take shelter. The hunting horn sounded again and both Dream and George looked further to see another wave of raiders waiting for their turn to pour into the village. Skeletons, zombies, and spiders were also spawning, beginning their own invasion.

Behind them, the door slammed open, Sapnap leaning in and already equipped to fight. "Guys! Raid! C'mon, we gotta help save the village!" he yelled, Techno and Bad rushing by behind him to get to the frontlines.

Within a few minutes of getting involved in fending off the Illager raid, it was quickly becoming clear that more than just items were being brought in from Dungeons. Illagers dressed in robes and jeweled hats lifted hands over floating books, beams of light shooting from them into Vindicators. Those Vindicators ended up with boosted strength, as a number of Avatars found out the hard way, their experience orbs spilling out as they were caught off guard and killed, bodies vanishing in a burst of pixels and smoke. Sapnap put his pvp experience to use, dodging swipes from the powered Vindicators and leaping before his strikes to increase the chances of dealing a critical blow with his axe.

George climbed on top of one of the market stalls, firing arrows rapidly and ducking behind Bad when targeted, the demonic Avatar using his shield to cover them both when needed. He cringed when another archer nearby was knocked from her perch by a powerful hit from a Pillager's crossbow; she was then immediately trampled under a Ravager's hooves. "How many of them are left in the wave?!" he yelled out.

"What the muffin is going **on**?! Why are they so hard to kill now?! When did Illagers start using muffin _magic_?!" Bad exclaimed in a panic, looking around to stay alert to any potential sneak attacks. "Wait! Where's Dream?!"

Down in the fray on the streets, Technoblade moved swiftly to lash out strikes at the Ravager before darting out of the way of its retaliation. He took cover behind a damaged house, huffing for breath as he pressed a hand to a gash in his sword arm. A sped up Vindicator caught him by surprise before he could regain the upper hand, resulting in the injury that drained some color from the large heart in the center of his hotbar but left his heart meter untouched. He flicked a hand to open his status screen and double check, flinching at the shaking of the ground and building from the wounded Ravager ramming into things in its search for him.

A blur of lime green shot through the village, making its way past knocked over stalls and snatching up spilled blocks of wood planks and cobblestone. There was a quick stop at the blacksmith's shop to grab some iron and drop a few emeralds in place, another in the market square to borrow a crafting table, then another to the well to scoop up water in a bucket. The streak of color then bounced up a series of piles of wreckage to clear distance much more rapidly than the Avatars running entirely on the ground. One more leap over the dwindling Illager numbers of the first wave that the Avatars in the village were cutting through, and water splashed out from a freshly crafted bucket to cushion Dream's landing from the jump.

"Dream! What are you **doing**?!" Sapnap yelled out at him, turning in place to raise his shield against arrows from skeletons that finally reached the village alongside zombies and spiders, the mobs taking advantage of the chaos of the raid to bring down already exhausted Avatars easily. The blonde didn't answer, mask in place and hood raised over his head as he flicked out a stone shovel and started digging out the grass between the second wave of raiders and the village. "What the-? What _is_ he doing?" Sapnap muttered, squinting suspiciously before redirecting his attention to the flood of mobs, respawned Avatars rushing in to back him up.

The trench being dug out reached three blocks deep and four blocks wide. Dream flicked the shovel from his hand to a set of trapdoors that he rushed to place on the sides of the grass blocks closest to the second wave. A hunting horn sounded, the signal for the next attack, and he cursed under his breath as he moved faster, placing the last trapdoor and making sure they aligned properly. "Go, go, _go_ ," he huffed, flicking to TNT in his hand next. He waved fingers over it to bring up the item window and tapped an option in a corner of the screen to set the explosives to follow Minecraft rules before placing them on the ground haphazardly, trying to get as much coverage as he could.

The ground shook from the stomping of Ravagers racing for the village. Dream tapped the option on the item screen again, then flicked the TNT to ladders and placed them against the trench walls, scrambling up and running. He counted under his breath, then turned and flung another block of TNT at the trench, watching it land in the trench as he immediately began throwing down cobblestone blocks to build a wall to hide behind.

The raiders rushing forward tried to turn their mounts at the sight of the thrown block, but the Ravagers were already charging at full speed, blindly believing the ground was unbroken before them until they ran over the trapdoors and tumbled into the trench full of TNT, just as the solitary blinking one detonated. Blocks and items were blasted up and away from the crater, the sound of Ravager death groans faint under the sounds of the chain of explosions.

In the village, a deafening roar of surprise and triumph swelled up from the Avatars that witnessed the spectacle. The moment of victory didn't last long, however; mobs still poured in, and a few Vindicators and robed Illagers had managed to avoid the trap, moving to pin the tired Avatars against them.

"YEEES!" Dream cried in exultation at the explosion behind him before immediately hissing, _"Fuck!"_ The mobs were still closing in, and not all of the second wave had been taken out. At least the harder hitting mobs were dead; that gave the others a better chance at surviving and taking out the second wave. Hopefully there wouldn't be a third. He got to his feet and flicked to his axe, running at the clusters of zombies, skeletons, and spiders to help thin the groups.

This was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Titles with an asterisk means the word had to be substituted. The original prompt was 'birth'.


	11. 19. Forgotten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While everyone is distracted by victory and clean-up, someone is forgotten in the field, and the Illager raid is quite content to take at least one prize from the battle in the plains...

19\. Forgotten*

The meadow west of the village was thoroughly torn apart by explosion and random builds of makeshift barricades of cobble and wood. Mobs and Avatars collided in fighting, with Illagers mixed in still trying to reach the village to loot it of valuables. The second wave had been thinned by Dream's trap, the masked Avatar now in the midst of the zombies, skeletons, and spiders approaching the village from the forest on the other side of the meadow.

After the morale boost that came from the trap, the Avatars in the village managed to get themselves somewhat organized. The more combat oriented Avatars kept fighting, whittling away at the hostile population. Sapnap and Technoblade fought side by side, slashing methodically and making short jumps to deal critical blows.

Behind the frontlines, Defense Avatars assembled walls and held shields in place to protect the archers that targeted skeletons and Creepers that may come after those fighting in front. BadBoyHalo stood his ground among them, keeping George well defended as the souls of every mob he shot down zipped through the air to soak into the Soul Healer charm he wore.

"It's almost sunrise! The undead mobs are gonna be toast!" an Avatar that looked like they were made of cake called out excitedly, bow and arrows aiming at Illagers that were starting to retreat from the attack. Cheers rose again and the Avatars pressed on with a second wind.

Dream jumped with his axe in hand, bringing it down in a critical strike on a Creeper before it could explode. The mask tracked the next closest mob, marking it in his vision. He turned and ran after it, darting across the grass to build up speed for another critical hit. A warning flickered in the corner of his eye, flashed by the mask, before a glob of sticky webbing hit his legs and anchored him to the ground instantly.

 _"What?"_ he exclaimed in shock, pulling as hard as he could to break free. "What **is** this?! George! Sapnap! Come get me!" The webbing held fast, the spider that fired it crawling closer before raising its back legs to lift its body and shoot another batch of webbing. " _Dude_ , that's **gross**! **Stop** it!" Dream yelled at the spider in irritation. "What the **hell** is _wrong_ with you?!"

The ground shook from the stomping of fleeing mobs and Illagers. Startled, Dream looked back towards the village and breathed a sigh of relief to see it still standing, the Avatars in the distance all cheering and placing torches to prevent further spawns in the darkness surrounding it. Hopefully, his friends will soon be by to help him out, though he'd probably have to put up with some teasing over getting stuck in spider webs. Dream smiled at the thought, his guard dropping just a bit while the mask continued marking close targets. When one marker bloomed larger than the rest, far closer than any other, he reacted as quickly as he could, trying to move in place to reorient for defense. The spider web still affected him, robbing him of all speed and leaving him vulnerable.

A Pillager slammed the butt of their crossbow into his temple as revenge for the loss of their Ravager mount, then was yanked away and lectured by a Vindicator. Dream collapsed to the ground, out cold from the blow while the webbing finally faded away. One of the robed Illagers approached, arms tucked into the sleeves of the garment. They bent and studied him closely, then looked at the lecturing Vindicator. They grunted for attention and, once given it, tilted their head at the unconscious Avatar. A conversation played out in gestures, grunts, and deep hums until a consensus was reached.

The Vindicator took out a pair of leads from one pocket, coming over to use them to tie Dream's arms behind his back, then his ankles, crossing them to make it more difficult to stand or maintain balance alone. Once done, the Vindicator picked up the masked Avatar and threw him over one shoulder, stomping off towards the forest edge where the smaller third wave had hidden to do their own attack. It was called off after the trap was witnessed.

Losses had been incurred, but at least they managed to grab something of value. A ransom always did bring in a good amount of emeralds, and it was poetic justice to hold the one responsible for those losses as a hostage for compensation.

The Vindicator was granted use of one of the remaining Ravagers, and they carefully climbed up to arrange the load the beast would carry. Once Dream was secured on the Ravager's back, the Vindicator jumped down and signaled to the others. As night began to give way to dawn, the third wave headed deeper into the forest, making their way back to home base.

The prisons in the woodland mansion were far more secure for holding hostages anyway.

With the sun rising slowly to bring dawn to the world, the Avatars were hard at work rebuilding damaged structures and tending to the wounded. Potions and food were passed out to help those who fought heal to full strength again. Technoblade leaned against the lamppost outside the inn they spent much of the night, munching on a well roasted chicken leg. His arm was bandaged, though he had yet to refresh his skin to repair the damage to his clothes.

"Techno!" Sapnap called out and he raised his head to watch the group of Avatars join him with tired smiles. "You alright, man? Heard you took out a Ravager solo. Epic!" the athlete praised.

"Ugh, I'm so tired," George whined, slouching in place. "We only got a few hours of sleep, then all the fighting, then the rebuilding. We're gonna have to stay another day to make sure we're decent enough to travel!"

"I don't see why _you're_ complaining, you get to share a room with Dream again. At least he doesn't snore," Bad mock-grumbled, arms folding over his chest as he squinted at Sapnap.

"For the **last** time, Bad, I **don't** snore!" Sapnap shouted back, waving a fist in the air.

"Yeah, speaking of Dream, I haven't seen him since he set off that trap. Took screenshots in case it makes a good thumbnail, but anyway, yeah," Techno remarked evenly and looked around at the reconstruction efforts. "He doesn't seem to be out here helping anyone."

The group fell silent, looking at one another in slowly growing realization and horror. Techno looked at each of them and swallowed his bite of chicken, one eye twitching a little to betray his sudden nervousness.

"The compass!" George blurted out suddenly, swiping open his inventory and searching the number of items he had stored. He found the enchanted compass and pulled it out, holding it in his hand as the others crowded close. The needle spun, disoriented at first before swinging around to point westward. "He went west. Why? Why would he leave us behind?" he asked in confusion.

"He wouldn't just ditch us, George. We made plans and Sapnap has the map," Bad pointed out incredulously. "Dream's not just gonna go running off like this is a regular manhunt; we're **with** him this time!"

"Okay, let's just take a deep breath," Techno told the group, holding up his hands and moving them to help visualize as he inhaled deeply, then breathed out slowly, moving his hands outward in time with the exhale. The three Avatars before him copied his movements, breathing in and then exhaling in synch. "Now, we've got the compass to help us track him. This is good. We'll get some potions and artifacts like we planned, and then we follow after him to find out what happened. This'll be easy content. Nothing can possibly go wrong."

"Yeah, that sounds like a good plan," Sapnap agreed in a subdued voice. He reached out and patted George on the shoulder. "C'mon. Let's get those supplies. Sooner we have 'em, sooner we can go look for Dream."

\---

Awareness returned slowly to Dream, along with the remnants of a splitting headache that was quickly fading. He groaned in complaint and tried to lift a hand to rub at the painful spot on his head. His eyes snapped open when he found himself unable to move. "What? What the _hell_?"

There was a campfire set up not far away, surrounded by Illagers, some resting and some standing watch. A few other campfires were also lit for the Ravagers to rest by. Dream was laid out on a thin blanket, woven with Illager designs, another rolled and placed under his head to be a pillow. Thick, dark oak trees towered overhead, their canopies barely letting any moonlight through. Wherever he was, it was away from the village and -he glanced around for any other prisoners- away from his friends.

He tested the bindings holding his arms and ankles, looking over his shoulder to check behind himself. A fence post with a lead tied around it was placed down, the other end of the lead trailing to him, likely to whatever was tying his arms in place. Dream huffed in frustration, remembering the spider that got him into this mess and the way the webbing had frozen him effectively at near the peak of his running speed. That was definitely Minecraftia taking his speedrunning skill into account when bringing in whatever could be used to kill him and Herobrine by proxy. He'd learned a lot from his nights awake, but clearly there was more to observe and study to think of counters and adapting.

Some of the awake Illagers gave him dirty looks. Dream glared back, the mask matching his expression. This was probably the third wave from the raid that was defeated at the village. "Salty much?" he snarked with a vicious grin. "Not my fault you guys suck so much you got wrecked by a cheap mob-grinder trap." A Pillager, probably the one that clocked him, stormed up to him, grabbing the front of his shirt and dragging him upright, one fist pulled back to punch him.

One of the new Illager types threw an apple at the Pillager's head, rushing over and grunting in an annoyed tone, waving their hands around. The Pillager just scowled at whatever was being said and Dream smiled smugly up at them, raising his eyebrows tauntingly. With obvious frustration, the Pillager shoved him back onto the thin bedding and stomped away, small clouds with lightning drifting around their head.

"Yeah, that's right, walk away," Dream called out cheerfully. "You couldn't 1v1 me anyway. You're not Technoblade; I can kick your ass so easy. Bet that's why you got me tied up." The robed Illager gave him an annoyed glare, which he returned with a smile and a flutter of eyelashes, looking as sweet as could be. They were the ones dumb enough to take him prisoner; if the way the new Illager behaved when he was under threat of harm, then obviously he was valuable somehow unhurt, which gave him free reign to be as annoying as he wanted to vent frustration.

If nothing else, pissing off the Illagers could lead them to make mistakes in holding him, which could open opportunities for escape.

"C'mon, guys, you _must_ have noticed me missing by now," Dream sighed, wriggling around to try and get comfortable. Rest would help him be ready for those opportunities.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The original prompt entry was 'slippers'.
> 
> The Illager raid party has a half-day lead in travel and can cover greater distance in a day thanks to their Ravager mounts.


	12. 38. Sleep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Antagonizing his captors comes with consequences for Dream. His greatest weapons are his speed and his mind; Minecraftia helps the Illagers neutralize his mind...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember those warning tags? This is why they were added. Note: No addiction takes place and the effects are temporary, but there *is* non-consensual repeated exposure to maintain the effects.

38\. Sleep

"You guys _suuuuuuck_ ," Dream said loudly, drawing out the word longer than necessary for extra irritation. Two days of travel through the dark oak forest and then across a river via bridge was uncomfortable when done tied to the back of a Ravager. "Your mob beast thing stinks! It's lumpy and smelly, I bet **none** of you shower.. do you know how long it's been since I had a nice bath? If I end up as smelly as this stupid Ravager, I'm holding all of you responsible, okay?"

He knew he was grating on their nerves. He couldn't run, he couldn't craft or send messages, but he could talk and he was just as fast with his mouth as he was with his feet. Luckily, there was no end to the amount of complaints and chatter he could dish out over time.

The Illagers kept giving him nastier looks, some holding hands over their ears in attempts to block him out. "I bet you can't even smell it. Can't tell the difference between Ravager stink and your own stink. Well, **I** can tell and I _haaaaate_ it!" Dream went on, squirming to rub the lead binding his ankles against the leather straps of the Ravager's harness. Not enough to break, just to weaken.

During the nights when the Illagers camped to rest, Dream's chattering was put on pause. Throat and mouth dry from constant talking, he let himself have the breaks, knowing that this was a battle of attrition and he could just as easily defeat himself if he wasn't careful. He took small victories where he could; a Vindicator pulling him more roughly from the Ravager's back, a Pillager leaving him in a fit for a few moments alone while he answered nature's call, a robed Illager using up a health potion to heal him after Dream baited the grudge-holding Pillager into punching him in the jaw and stomach. The only time any of them had relief from his verbal assault was after sunset.

While Dream still wasn't entirely sure why the robed Illagers were bent on keeping him as unharmed as possible, he took advantage of that protective streak whenever he could. They helped him eat and drink water since none of them were willing to untie his arms for even that, and were more likely to use the raid party's supplies on him if he succeeded in taking damage from an irritated Illager. If he could make them waste enough supplies, escaping would be easier later.

He grinned toothily as he drifted to sleep on the bedding prepared for him, already anticipating leaving the raid party in the dust soon enough.

Morning of the fourth day since he was captured; Dream woke to a robed Illager holding a bowl of stew for his breakfast. A second Illager helped him sit up while the first scooped up a spoonful and held it out for him. He opened his mouth to eat, sparing the other Illagers a brief glance when several details suddenly stood out to him.

The Illager that helped him up hadn't let go of his shoulders.

The other Illagers were watching him with small, smug smiles.

His mask targeted the bowl of stew being served to him and displayed its name.

_[Suspicious Stew.]_

Dream immediately shut his mouth, pinching his lips together and rearing away from the spoonful that nearly got fed to him. He struggled in a panic, the Illager holding him grunting for assistance and a third got involved in trying to force feed him the stew. The first Illager looked annoyed, trying to shove the spoon past his lips and dropping the tainted food when Dream bent forward to hide his face and make it that much harder on them. Perhaps he pushed the limits of their patience too far.

The third Illager must have gotten fed up. Dream nearly yelped as his head was forcefully lifted, his jaw caught in their grip. Fingers and thumb pressed painfully into his cheeks and his mouth opened against his will. He struggled harder, making little headway as he was held in place and the Suspicious Stew was forced into his mouth. Several spoonfuls were shoved in as Dream tried to force it back out, choking on broth and pieces of meat and herbs. His mouth was closed and covered to keep him from spitting the food out, his mask jostled out of position as the first robed Illager pushed it aside to pinch his nose shut.

_'I can't breathe! I can't breathe! Icantbreathe!'_

Dream swallowed the mouthful of food, coughing and gagging as he was finally released and allowed to fall aside onto the bedding. His head grew foggy, his vision swam; what was in the stew? What had they drugged him with? He kicked weakly, trying to break the bindings on his ankles and escape.

So hard to focus.

Fuzzy vision.

Someone stood over him and reached down.

_'Sapnap.. George.. help...'_

Dream's vision darkened, fading to black as he was lifted from the blankets and the Illagers' journey continued in silence.

He woke sometime during the day's travel through a desert, for what was worth of the word 'wake'. Dream still couldn't focus through the heavy fog that settled on his mind, couldn't recognize his own limbs as connected to him, the world swimming on the edges of his vision. The Illagers were confident in whatever was in the stew being able to better control him; rather than being tied onto the back of a Ravager, he rode on one with a robed Illager, body tucked against them to keep him upright and stable.

His mask listed a few effects in a corner of his vision, but he couldn't make sense of the words or icons. He closed his eyes, too tired to try, and opened them to see the sun setting and camp being set up.

There was something he'd been trying to do. What _was_ it?

An opened water bottle was pressed to his mouth and he drank a few mouthfuls before time lost meaning again. Eyes closed, then opened. Morning, and the robed Illager knelt before him with a bowl of food and a spoon held out to him. The mask targeted the bowl.

_[@$ &%!%*@@?|+$]_

Dream opened his mouth and accepted the meal, eating a few spoonfuls before the haze grew heavier and the world darkened to black.

Dark oak forest, the smell of mushrooms and ferns. Dream let his eyes wander over the greenery, an odd pressure rising in his head at the sight of patches of glowing red on the ground. His attention wandered and the pressure faded. There was something he was supposed to do, wasn't there?

A massive construct came into view, walls and a roof of wood and cobblestone towered over the canopy of leaves. Dream tried to focus, something about the building was tugging at a memory.

A piece of paper waved at him.. teasing laughter.. a smile and pink hair...

"Wuh.. wait," Dream protested weakly, struggling to piece together fragments of memory. There was something there. _Something_ was there.

The Illagers pulled to a stop near the entrance, other Illagers walking up to meet them and lead the Ravagers away to their stables. Dream mumbled a halfhearted protest as he was passed down from the robed Illager's mount into the waiting arms of a Vindicator. He wanted to sleep, sleep the fog away, let himself float fully away or sink into his own head. He was carried into the mansion bridal style, down halls full of Evokers, Pillagers, and strange armored Illagers, past rooms he couldn't focus enough on to identify, until the Vindicator turned to enter a large room full of prison cells made of cobblestone and iron.

A Pillager guard saluted them and flipped a lever to one cell, the iron door opening to reveal a decently sized room with a bed, cauldron of water and a second empty cauldron set into the floor in a corner, a trapdoor attached to close over it. A lantern hung from the ceiling, shining in the cell. The Vindicator went in, setting the masked Avatar on the bed.

_[Respawn point set.]_

"..No, _no_ , wait," Dream mumbled, making an effort to push through the fog. Escape. He had to escape. No. He had to be here. There was a reason to be here. Wasn't there?

The leads were taken off his arms and ankles but he still couldn't get them to move, managing to make his fingers twitch. The Vindicator nodded in apparent satisfaction and then left him there. With a heavy clang, the iron door swung closed and Dream's breath hitched. For a moment, the cobblestone looked like sandstone.

No.

_No._

Not **again**.

"Please," he begged weakly, shutting his eyes tightly. " _Please_.. let me out.. let me _out_..."

The words eventually trailed into silence.

The effects of the Suspicious Stew wore off the next day. An instant later, Dream was slamming fists against the iron door, screaming to be let out. The door slammed open, nearly catching his arm against the wall, and an axe slashed down across his chest, knocking him backwards to make room for a robed Illager to enter and set a bowl of stew on a slab stuck to the wall to serve as a table. The mask targeted it immediately.

_[Suspicious Stew.]_

"I'm **not** eating it!" Dream snapped, wincing as he pressed a hand to his chest to check for injury. The Illagers just looked at him, then left the cell, the door slamming shut in his face. "What do you **want** with me?!" he yelled through the iron bars of the cell, gripping them in his hands and shaking them in frustration.

There had to be some reason he was captured, right? Otherwise they would have just killed him back at that village while he was trapped by the spiderweb. Why did they take him then? He pushed away from the bars and gestured before himself to open his inventory. He might as well just start breaking out and get back to George and the others...

Wait.

Dream's fingertip froze over the crafting area in his inventory. Now that the drugged soup wasn't affecting him anymore, he could remember clearly the plan to stock up on potions and head towards the woodland mansion in Sapnap's map. Was **this** that mansion? His eyes flicked upward and around himself. If this was the mansion, then all he had to do was stay in place and his friends would come to him.

" _Uuugh_ , so I gotta stay here as their prisoner?! This is so _stupid_!" he groaned, shoulders slumping. And he couldn't just make a tower to use fall damage to force a respawn because he'd been made to set the point in the cell. With an annoyed growl, Dream pulled a loaf of bread from his inventory and swiped it closed, going to sit on the bed and eat. Lucky for him, having a backpack meant he was designated the 'mule' for the group, carrying the bulk of their supplies as well as anything he picked up that he thought would be useful in future situations, like the TNT he'd collected as drops from the zombies on night watch. That had been a surprising development, but a welcome one for building traps.

He finished off the bread and stretched one arm with a yawn, his other hand swiping open his status screen to check on his health. Sapnap had gotten on his case to wear one of the new armors and pestered Techno into buying Thief Armor; when Dream put it on, the color changed from dark gray to green. He assumed it had something to do with modifying to fit his style, especially since he didn't wear the hood and mask that was supposed to be paired with it. Wearing the Dungeons armor had given him a single large heart that bisected his hot bar, like the others reported seeing on their own status screens. Right now, Dream's heart gauge glowed a soft pink, with a portion of the color missing due to the damage he took. It was slowly refilling since he ate breakfast and his regen was working again.

Brushing crumbs off of himself, Dream swiped his hand in front of himself again, this time opening his chat screen. If those dumb Illagers thought he wouldn't do anything just because he was force-bound to the bed in the cell and they brought him drugged stew, they clearly hadn't faced anything like the genius of a speedrunner with hundreds of hours of manhunt training backed into a corner.

_[You whisper to George: **George!** A bunch of Illagers kidnapped me! I'm being held in a woodland mansion, I don't know where it is, where I am, they had me **drugged** , George!]_

_[George whispers to you: **Dream!** Omg, Dream, you're ok! We know! We're following the compass and the map! It says you're west! We're on our way!]_

_[You whisper to George: Get me **out** of here! I'm in a cell with an iron door, I can't get **out**! They kept **drugging** me, George! Hurry **up**!]_

_[George whispers to you: **Drugging** you?! With **what**? **How?!** Can you respawn back at the inn?]_

_[Technoblade whispers to you: We need inside info. Dump the stew, pretend you ate it and are under the effects of the drug, spy as best you can.]_

_[You whisper to George: Can't. They force-bound me to a bed in the cell while I was out of it.]_

_[You whisper to Technoblade: Alright, but if they try anything funny with me, I'm throwing hands.]_

_[Technoblade whispers to you: I doubt Illagers are capable of that but if you feel like you're in a situation that demands self-defense, go for it. Hopefully we'll be there to back you up.]_

Dream closed the window and sighed in frustration. He didn't want to be here, but his friends needed time to reach him and information to help them navigate the mansion. Mind games it is, then. He reached out to grab the bowl of stew, looking out of the bars to the cell to be sure he wasn't watched, then scraped a portion of the stew into the empty cauldron in the floor, enough to look like he ate a small amount of the stuff. With that done, he kicked the trapdoor shut over the cauldron to hide it away, set the bowl back onto the slab-table, then flopped gracelessly onto the bed to wait.

It took the better part of an hour before the iron door opened again to let in the robed Illager. They checked the bowl of stew first, then turned to Dream, lifting one of his arms. Dream kept himself as loose and limp as he could, staying silent as the Illager determined whether or not he was truly under the stew's status effects. Finally, the Illager set his arm down carefully, collected the bowl of food, and left with a satisfied hum, the iron door clanging shut behind them.

This was going to be so _**boring**_.


	13. 15. Search

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Several 'factions' of Avatars are all searching for the same thing; the speedrunning Avatar known as Dream, who is currently a prisoner of the Illagers in their woodland mansion home base. Time is running out as these groups close in and Dream's friends are rushing to his rescue. Which faction reaches him first?

15\. Search *

Sky Capital~

In an undisclosed laboratory, a Fantastic-Type Avatar with fairy wings and long iridescent blue hair stood over a command block, a smile on her face as she held out her hands. Code was condensing over it, free-flowing data swirling around it in a cloud as it assembled into the item the command within the block was linked to, a command written after days of studying the diamond-tipped arrow that once was in their possession. It was so near completion now; she ran the tip of her tongue over her lips and smiled wider.

Beautiful. The code and data merged together in a brilliant display of light, and the final product floated in the air before her. Absolutely beautiful.

An enchanted compass, shimmering crimson, ridged in diamond instead of iron. The needle within spun wildly before halting in one direction. West.

The Avatar laughed, her voice ringing through the lab as her associates looked on eagerly. "It's _finished_! Our research has borne fruit; the Herobrine Compass!" she declared, taking the item in her hand and showing it off to the others. Cheers went up around her and she basked in the warmth of their support. "With this, we can find Herobrine's vessel easily."

"And then we can transport them here and begin Phase 2 of our project?" an Avatar in a teddy bear onesie asked, eyes wide with excitement. She nodded cheerfully and the Avatar cheered with a fist pump. "Yes! Perfect immunity and the end of Herobrine forever!"

"That's right! Once we have Herobrine's host body, we can begin the research to develop a perfect Vaccine; one that will kill the Virus for good and lock Minecraftia's immunity in place forever!" the fairy Avatar declared and held up the compass. "And with this, **we** can find Him before the combat division does! For too long Sky Army has dragged its feet in doing what must be done to truly save our world! But now **we'll** have the upper hand; **we'll** do what Sky Army _couldn't_! The code research division led by me, Sapphira! We'll defeat Herobrine for good!"

The cheers went up again and Sapphira smiled at her colleagues before opening a chat screen and typing out a message. "Alright, now we need our inside agents to gather here so I can give them this compass and they can go get my research subject," she said cheerfully, adjusting the cat's-eyes glasses rest daintily on her nose. "Oh, this is so exciting!"

Soon after the message was sent, a group of Recruits arrived at the lab, elytras strapped to their shoulders, each Avatar saluting Sapphira respectfully. She waved them over with a smile and held out the compass to them. "Just like I told you, I've created this compass to track down Herobrine's code in His new body," she told them and clapped her hands together. "Bring back the body alive and in good condition; Setosorcerer's notes on manipulating Avatar Core Files had a note that experimentation is best done when the subject is at their best possible health. Wouldn't want them to die or accidentally release the Virus, after all!"

"The host hasn't been taken over, right? The mission order notes we got said the Virus was inactive. We'll only be dealing with the poor sap that got shot by that arrow?" the squad leader asked warily. Sapphira nodded and adjusted her glasses again.

"Oh, for sure, just a regular Avatar for now. A Carrier, if you will. They're probably quite sick and suffering painfully," she added with a smile. "The Herobrine Virus manipulating files in a still conscious Avatar would cause quite a bit of agony. Actually, anyone doing that to an Avatar that's awake and aware would be tantamount to performing torture on them. It's quite fascinating to read about it in Seto's notes." Sapphira flapped her hand at the squad. "Okay, well, off with you then! Stop by the treasury on your way and collect your stipend for the trip; there should be extra for paying any bribes needed to keep people's mouths shut about our little operation. Toodles~!"

\---

Abandoned Village~

Houses burned as the Cultists tore through every building they could, raiding what supplies they could find for their travels. Stacy perched on top of the village well, pouting as she looked at her compass. The needle continued pointing westward, only shifting slightly north or south to indicate small adjustments in Dream's flight from his destiny. She sighed, kicking her feet to swing them back and forth.

"He's just going that way and he's been doing it for _soooo_ long," she complained to herself. "God, it's **just** like a Minecraft Manhunt video, only he's got a whole gang with him and I'm stuck having to teach _these_ bunch of lamers that Dream can haul ass across a map faster than it takes **them** to cut down a tree!" Once the group gathered at the well with their inventories full of anything they could take, Stacy jumped down to join them. "So, what did you guys find?" she asked, looking at them all expectantly.

"Food, mostly. Anything of real value must have been raided already," the other Avatars reported flatly.

"Only other item of note is a house whose beds and furnaces were taken. A jukebox there holds traces of the Sky Amulet's power," another Cultist pointed out.

"Huh, missing beds and furnaces; that's Dream's style of raiding, yeah," Stacy muttered and frowned. "But a jukebox with part of the Sky Amulet's aura on it? Did Sky manage to track down Dream?" She checked the compass again. "But it says he's still going west, so he didn't get killed by Sky or anything. That's weird." She sighed again and flicked her hand to put away the compass. "Ok, back to the horses, everyone! Keep heading west! We're bound to catch up as long as he stays on foot!"

Numerous hooves kicked up dust as the Cultists rode on, following the path through the forest in their search.

\---

Sky Hub Orbital Sanctuary~

Sky paced in front of the golden pillar, growling and grumbling under his breath. Deadlox leaned back against it, eyes closed as he rested one hand to his temple. "Have you found one yet?" the brunet asked suddenly and the russet-haired Avatar grunted.

"There's weird new things in Minecraftia. People have items that let them summon pets, but they don't look like items from any plugins or mods I know," Deadlox muttered. "Now shut up so I can try and hook into a mob that's near those coords we got." Sky groaned, throwing his head back as he stomped in place.

" _Aaaaugh_ , **why** did our Viral powers have to be so _weaaaaak_ now?" he whined. "You used to be able to control _sooooo_ many mobs and speedrun across whole biomes in a blink!"

"Yeah, well, had to give up a lot of power in exchange for no longer being a threat to everyone's existence," the little dancer retorted. "Like you with your gold tentacles; you only get ten, not a million like you used to spawn when pissed." He shifted in place, eyebrows furrowing in concentration, then slowly opened his eyes, completely consumed with a deep blue color that glowed softly. "Got one. Baby chicken near the coords. Moving in," Deadlox reported curtly and his eyebrows shot up a moment later, sweat beading on his face. "Dat's not good, not good at all, oh not good," he babbled.

"What is it?! What **happened**?" Sky demanded, alarmed. "Is Dream there? Is he in trouble? Do I gotta TP him? I'm gonna TP him." He swept his hand in front of himself to open the chat window and input the command.

"There's a village, looks abandoned, it's burnt down too. Not seeing any signs of him anywhere," Deadlox went on and made a small hum of disapproval. "Just heard fireworks overhead. Elytra fliers. Could be the mercenary Zip and TrueMU hired. How's the TP command?"

Sky shook his head, sending the message a second time. "It's getting blocked by the amulet. I can TP to him, but I can't force him to me because the amulet's registered him as the Herobrine Anti-Viral; it protects against abduction via console commands after.. after what happened to me," he muttered. He pressed a hand to his sword arm, squeezing down phantom pain from old traumas, then huffed. "Just gotta hope that whatever happened there, Dream wasn't caught up in it. Can you keep searching through mobs? I don't want to risk pinging the amulet again without a plausible story and it'll be awhile before server immunity drops enough to try it."

"Those fireworks were heading west, so I'll scan for mobs that way. There's bound to be a Creeper or something that can spawn and let me see what's out there."

\---

Oak Forest Biome~

"You're going to use up **all** my emeralds at this pace!" Technoblade complained, leading the group of Avatars on horseback.

"Sorry, but we all need horses if we're going to be able to catch up with Dream!" George called back, holding his compass with one hand and the reins of his own horse in the other. He was flanked by Sapnap and BadBoyHalo, both of them keeping watch around themselves for hostile mobs and any indicators that their missing friend had gathered resources along the way.

"I've seen those Minecraft Manhunt videos; he could be miles away by now!" Techno griped even as he sought out clues in the environment with them. "Give him five minutes and he's already got iron armor and a portal to the Nether; we've been at this for **six days** now! He'd be sitting on the dragon's egg and wheezing like a kettle long before this!"

"This isn't a video, though, so we really gotta hurry and get him back! Sapnap, check the map; how far are we to the mansion?" Bad called out, worried expression never leaving his face. The ravenet flicked his hand from the battle-axe to the woodland mansion map.

"We're really close by! There's color already filling in!" Sapnap exclaimed just as George yelped and pulled on his reins, causing his horse to rear up and whinny. "George!"

"Sorry, sorry! Dream messaged me! _Dream messaged me!_ Hang on!" the brunet yelled, sweeping his hand in front of himself to open the chat window. "He says he was kidnapped by the Illager raid party." Techno circled around back to them on his horse as the others drew closer to listen. "They took him to a woodland mansion, they're keeping him prisoner there... they **drugged** him!"

_"What?_ That's muffined; _how_? There's no **drugs** in Minecraft," Bad said incredulously, head tilting as he tried to process that.

"I _knew_ he was being reckless, going into that horde of mobs," Sapnap sighed harshly. "He's **always** doing things like that, and then we have to come bail him out, if he hasn't already done it himself and laughed it off, the muffinhead." George was typing rapidly, sending and receiving messages as Techno swiped open a chat window of his own, a slight frown on his face. "Let him know we're on our way."

"They have him in a prison cell, with an iron door! He can't handle that well, remember?! And they kept _drugging_ him, Sapnap; there's something in Minecraftia that can drug him and keep him from escaping! How are we supposed to counter **that**?!"

"Tell him to meme himself! Respawn back at the inn and we can catch up there!" Bad suggested as George typed faster. After a moment, he shook his head.

"They forced him to set spawn in the prison. He can't get out!"

"I told him to fake being drugged and try and spy for us," Techno said suddenly, closing his window at the same time as George. "We're just gonna have to break into that mansion and rescue him."

"Then let's get ridin'. I'm in the mood to crack heads over what the honk they did to Dream," Sapnap growled, snapping the reins of his horse and leaping forward into a gallop as the others hurried to catch up and follow the map and compass.

\---

Woodland Mansion~

The Illagers patrolling the roof of the mansion looked up at the sound of fireworks and spotted a squad of Avatars flying towards them in V-formation. One raised the alarm as the others lifted crossbows, arming them and readying to fire once the group was in range. As a unit, the elytra users dived down and landed heavily on the roof, shields immediately raised defensively as their leader called out for peace.

"We're here to do business!" he added, and the Pillagers lowered their crossbows, looking at each other incredulously. A door nearby opened, several Vindicators and Evokers emerging to see what the ruckus was about. The elytra unit leader flicked an emerald into his hand to show it off. "We're here to do _business_ ," he repeated. "It's come to our attention that you might have in your possession.. a certain Avatar."

A robed Illager stepped forward from behind the more armed Illagers. They raised an eyebrow at the unit leader before gesturing with their hands over a floating book. Particles gathered to form the figure of an Avatar with a hood and cloak, a mask with a smiley face covering their own. The unit leader squinted at the particle image suspiciously.

"That might be what we're after," he said in a pleasant tone, smiling at the Illager. "Would it be possible to see the merchandise live?" The Illagers grunted and hummed among themselves for a few minutes before the robed one gestured to the unit, inviting them into the mansion. Shields lowered, the Avatars walked with the Illagers, descending flights of stairs to the ground floor. The halls were decorated with lush red and gold carpet, paintings, statues made of wool, and lanterns for light.

Soon they were in the prison room, looking into the rows of cells. One of the larger cells had the very same masked Avatar the robed Illager had shown them on the roof. They were slumped in place on the bed, held upright by chains attached to the ceiling that ended wrapped around their wrists. A bowl of Suspicious Stew sat on a slab nearby, a portion of it missing, possibly eaten. Particle effects floated around the slumped Avatar; they must have been suffering the effects of the stew.

"Is this the host? They don't **look** like they're suffering," one of the elytra users muttered warily. The unit leader pulled out the Herobrine Compass and held it up.

The needle pointed directly at the Avatar, the center of the compass pulsing with light.

"Says it's them, alright," he replied and flicked his hand to a satchel of emeralds, taking in the eager expressions on the Illagers' faces. "Well then, looks like we have a deal. One hundred emeralds for the prisoner."

Inside the cell, while the Recruits and Illagers made the sale, Dream's fingers twitched, the corners of his mouth curling up in a subtle smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An attempt to sort of show what the other characters were doing that were mentioned in previous chapters. The timeline is still a bit screwy but hopefully it all evens out.
> 
> Original prompt was 'collection'.


	14. 39. Fishing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Dream tries to escape the woodland mansion, the fighting between his friends, the Illagers, and the Recruits triggers the activation of the Viral powers encoded in Dream.

39\. Fishing

Dream hummed the four note melody that had become iconic of him and his Player's videos, moving items around on the interface hovering over the crafting table. Since the Illagers were content with their belief he'd been drugged out of his mind, no guards were posted to watch over him in his cell. This gave him ample room to work.

His backpack inventory window floated nearby, packed with all sorts of resources and items Dream had collected from the villages he and his friends visited, picked up as drops from mobs, gathered from the fields, or were just handed to him by the others. It was useful being the mule sometimes. Dream smiled to himself, surrounding a fresh apple with the gold ingots he kept on hand for piglin bartering. The result was a Golden Apple, a useful item for surviving traps.

He continued humming, looking over his supplies and thinking. Now and then he would glance around the cell, taking in his surroundings and considering how he could use it to his advantage. Cobblestone walls and floor, iron bars forming a window that he could look out of and the Illagers could look in.

Cobblestone, furnaces, beds, wood, coal, iron, gold, torches, arrows... Dream hummed, eyes lighting up behind the mask as a plan sparked and unfolded in his mind. He placed a furnace down, popping in two cobblestone and a few pieces of coal to cook them. While that was smelting, he pulled his pickaxe from his inventory and carefully mined away the cobblestone that made up the floor of his cell, then flicked to a shovel and cleared away the dirt underneath. He eyed the space he dug out, counting out blocks. Three deep, three wide, four long, with the fourth row under the block that supported the door. This space he filled with the last of his TNT, climbing up out of the initial hole in the floor he made and then covering it with cobblestone. On the surface, the cell looked perfectly normal, just as it was when he was first thrown in.

The cobblestone in the furnace had smelted to stone. Dream kept humming as he took them out and crafted them into a pressure plate. He placed it and the Golden Apple in his hotbar for easy access, then turned to his iron ingots. He broke one into nuggets, then assembled those with the ingots to craft chains. They'd be useful for dual purposes. Dream stood on his bed, placing the chains on the ceiling overhead and linking them to be long enough that they hung at head height over the bed. With that done, he stood back and looked over the room as a whole, trying to picture how the chain reaction would play out. That much TNT would definitely cause a lot of damage and kill any mob caught in the blast.. probably kill any Avatar caught in it too.

The melody faltered in his mouth as a trickle of doubt crept in. What if he ended up killed in the same blast? The bed would be destroyed, so he wouldn't respawn in the cell, but Minecraftia rules would take over, sending him to the world spawn.. in the heart of Sky Capital. Maybe he should just do nothing and wait for Sapnap and the others to arrive?

Dream shook himself off hard. No, that wasn't how he approached challenges and he wasn't going to start with it now. He recollected the crafting table and furnace, then sat on the bed and organized his hotbar to be ready to act when the chance came.

A hunting horn sounded, alarms were raised; seems like the chance was now. Had his friends made it? He took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, then smirked. Showtime.

He flicked to the pressure plate and placed it on the block in front of the iron door, taking care not to look at it too long. With it in place, Dream reached up with his left hand and took the end of one chain, twirling his arm so the chain wrapped around his wrist then tucking the loose end against the palm of his hand, held in place by his thumb. The wrapping was loose enough to be easy to remove by just letting go of the chain, but secure enough that it could hold his weight for a few moments. He let his arm go limp, his hand draping fingers down in such a way that it hid how the chain was 'secured' to his wrist. Perfect.

He listened carefully to the sounds of movement through the wooden walls of the prison room and the open-air of the iron bars lining his cell. Many footsteps walking in a cluster were approaching the room, likely a group coming to collect and move him. Good, a large group would get blown away and cause enough chaos that he could slip away and hide elsewhere in the mansion to gather information on his own terms. Dream flicked his free hand to the Golden Apple and quickly ate it for the health boost and absorption effect, then grabbed the other chain and mirrored the first one.

This was it. He slumped in place, trying hard to make himself look limp and listless and only supported by the chains, thankful that the mask he wore for longer periods of time now hid his expression.

Especially when a group of Illagers and Avatars walked into the room and the mask targeted the Avatars, identifying them immediately.

_[Sky Army Recruits.]_

Dream's eyes widened. _Recruits?!_ How did they **find** him?! Techno said he was the only one sent to look for the Anti-Viral Artifacts, so why were these guys-?

One of the Recruits took out an enchanted compass, and it took everything Dream had not to react to it. It wasn't one of George's creations, not a Manhunt Compass, but it was enchanted and the Avatar holding it smiled at him in a very unfriendly way before talking to the Illager.

_'You asshole; you're **buying** me from these guys? Like I'm just a **thing** to be owned? Well, now I'm not gonna feel as bad blowing you up.'_

He allowed himself a tiny smile as they approached the cell to collect him, looking as limp and vulnerable as he could the whole time.

The door opened, allowing the Recruit to enter and reach out to him.

The pressure plate clicked under his feet.

_Hissss!_

\---

"There it is! _There it is!_ I _see_ it!" George called out, pointing at the grand structure looming over the tops of the dark oak trees and giant mushrooms. Techno drew his rapier, shifting in his saddle as he looked over the environment.

"We haven't gotten any information from Dream on what's in there, so let's avoid the obvious front door approach," he said and drew up his horse to come to a stop. "Let's go to one of the sides and break in. Prison rooms tend to be on the ground floor so it'll be easy to just run in, grab him, and run out. All we have to do is figure out where he is exactly."

A series of explosions suddenly ripped through the air, sending Illagers scattering like angry bees in search of something to sting.

"There he is," George stated flatly. He blinked as Sapnap raced by him on his own horse, galloping towards the origin of the explosion with an enraged roar. "Sapnap! Wait for us!" he cried out, giving chase alongside Bad and Techno.

"This isn't stealthy at all! I asked for him to be stealthy and spy and get us information!" Techno groused loudly. "Explosions are the **opposite** of stealthy! _Dream!_ Dream, do you not know what stealthy _means_?! Do I need to get you a dictionary?!"

\---

The pit that was carved out by the explosions was partially full with broken blocks and injured Recruits and Illagers. A good number of both were killed by the chain reaction blasts but a few were dazed down below in the dirt and stone. Dream held onto the chains, wincing as he swung back and forth to gain momentum; at the peak of his forward swing, he released the ends of the chains, allowing them to slip away from his arms and fling him through the remains of the doorway to his cell onto more solid ground. Despite having taken some damage of his own, he yelled out triumphantly, both fists thrusting up into the air.

"YEEEEESSSS! Hah!" he cheered, then scrambled to his feet and ran for another prison cell, flicking a pickaxe into his hand. With that, he broke down the iron door, breathing a sigh of relief when it popped off the block and into his hand. He ran into the cell, then placed the door back and tried not to think about it after that. The same cobblestone made up the walls here, so Dream mined those, stepped into the space left behind and began towering up with the same cobblestone, clearing space above himself as he went and switching to his axe at the sight of wood planks.

He broke through the floor of the room above the prisons and peeked out over the edge of the hole. Empty. It looked like a storage room of sorts, walls lined with fence posts and double chests stacked between stair 'shelves'. He climbed out of the hole, replacing the wood plank and heading straight for the chests after. There were a lot of weapons, familiar ones like iron and stone swords and axes, as well as some of the newer ones that were imported from Dungeons. Illagers ran by the doorway to the storage room, intent on seeking out the source of the explosions. Dream crouched behind the chests, ducking down to keep hidden as he sorted through his inventory and the chest's, grabbing new weapons and tools to replace his damaged ones and ticking the option to use Dungeons mechanics on a few of them.

That done he pulled out flint and steel, striking them against everything wooden in the room to set the chests and the items within ablaze. Once the flames rose and were well on their way to consuming the storage room, Dream headed for a wall and broke through to the next room over, hood pulled down over his head and collar of his cloak pulled up in a makeshift smoke filter. He didn't bother replacing the blocks, just immediately scanned the room for hostiles before running through.

There were many tables and chairs as well as 'potted' plants made of leaves and fence posts, and a large kitchen area with many furnaces, smokers, and utensils for cooking. A cafeteria, then?

More stampeding. Guess the fire finally got noticed.

Dream looked around himself quickly; tower up to the next level or down to the ground floor again? The Illagers and Recruits were likely to move from ground level up to try and find him, and the hall was now full of Illagers trying to put out the fire he started. Up seemed to be the better option. He broke down the tables to gather the blocks and began towering in place, jumping and placing blocks under his feet as he made his way up to the ceiling. As Dream climbed higher, a few Illagers noticed the movement through the burned down wall that divided the rooms and immediately flooded the cafeteria, making a loud racket to call attention to him. Biting his lip nervously, he reached the ceiling and began breaking through the wood there.

Something impacted his leg, sending pain shooting through the limb as he screamed in shock before scrambling up and into the third floor of the mansion. He lay in place, gasping before looking to see what had happened. An arrow was buried in his calf, the shaft sticking out almost mockingly. Cursing under his breath, Dream reached down and pulled it out, wincing at the stain now spreading over his pant leg as he struggled to stand.

The sounds of fighting drifted up from below, the faint yells of _'Dream! Where are you?!'_ mixed in with the dying grunts of mobs and sound effects of magic casting. Had his friends shown up at last? Crap, that was both good and bad; good in that they can help him escape, bad in that now those Recruits knew his name. He tested his leg, gingerly putting weight on it and wincing at the pain. In this condition, he wouldn't be able to run. Where was his regen? Dream flicked open his status window, checking his hunger bar with one hand as the other flicked to some cooked pork to munch on and start healing.

Weird, he took a heart and a half of damage to the pink heart meter while the larger heart gauge was nearly full. Was that because he was hit by a normal Minecraftian weapon instead of a Dungeons-based one?

The sound of a firework made him turn his head, drawing his attention in surprise.

\---

Techno dodged and wove around the strikes being lashed out at him by Vindicators, moving gracefully across the floor as he struck back with the rapid strikes of his rapier, downing Illagers one after another. The hall of the second floor was slowly emptying. At the rate he was going, the population of the mansion would be wiped down to the lower double digits. Techno's grin was sharp and wicked, gleeful in the mayhem he brought to the mobs. His only regret was being unable to record any of it for his Player to use as free content.

Glass shattered from somewhere above him and Techno turned to the windows to check what caused the shattering sound. The glass panes of one window had already been destroyed by Sapnap in his rush to get into the mansion and find Dream, correctly predicting that the Avatar would climb higher in the structure to escape the prison. Techno ran to the open window, leaning out in time to see a pair of tangled bodies drop from above before fireworks went off and they swooped up on elytra wings. He blinked before recognizing the lime green of Dream's hood and cloak flapping in the wake of the elytra user's flight.

"Nope, I got paid to get him first. Find your own speedrunner to stan," Techno grumbled, flicking his hand to the fishing rod and casting the line out. It hooked onto a wing and he yanked hard on the line, dragging the flier out of the air.

The wing bent under the force of the pull, and twin shrieks of panic sounded out as both Dream and the elytra user plummeted to the ground. Techno followed the fall with an unimpressed look.

"If he fails the MLG water, I'm going to hold that over his head forever and he's going to have to put up with me laughing until someone else does something as impressively dumb," he told himself and tilted his head at the sight of water spreading over the mansion grounds. "Oh, look at that, he didn't mess it up. Oh no, where am I going to get laughs from now?" The water dispersed, its source block likely scooped back up, and Techno narrowed his eyes at seeing the elytra user press forward in attacking Dream, sending out punches and jabs that the speedrunner evaded clumsily, favoring one leg as he blocked and deflected and countered as best he could. What was going on?

Well, George, Bad, and Sapnap had the mansion pretty much in chaos and they'll find out pretty fast that Dream wasn't in the building anymore soon enough. The kingly Avatar leaped out the window, his own bucket of water in hand. He landed safely, then rushed to assist in the fight, only to freeze in shock as the elytra user finally landed a punch that knocked Dream's mask completely off his head, exposing his bruised face.

"You?! I recognize you! You're the Recruit that went missing after the last patrol missions were issued!" the elytra user declared in anger. " _You're_ the Herobrine vessel?! You're under arrest for desertion and treason! Surrender and come with me!"

Techno's eyes widened, his gaze still on Dream's face. The speedrunner broke into a wide smile, all teeth and too, too sharp to be his normal smile. Green eyes flashed magenta in color, glowing with inhuman light.

" _You_ tried to **buy** me, like I was a fucking piece of merch in a shop. I call **bullshit** on your laws," Dream chuckled and gestured with one hand, twisting it upward as though wrenching something out of the ground. Dirt blocks behind the elytra user blasted upward, a Wither Skeleton rising up and spinning its sword around before plunging it through his back. The Recruit stared at Dream in shock and horror as he fell to the ground, body bursting into a cloud of particles, experience orbs scattering with tinkling bell notes.

Horrified, Techno took a step back as Dream slowly turned in place, still smiling widely as he lifted his arms showman-style, additional Wither Skeletons rising from within the ground at the silent command, their eye sockets filled with the same magenta light. Dream then pointed up at the mansion, and the small army of Wither Skeleton rushed for the building, scrambling up the walls in a clatter of pitch black bones to reach open windows and get to whoever was inside. Honking screams of terror quickly sounded out alongside renewed fighting and death groans.

All while Dream laughed, his mask left on the grass not far away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sky and Deadlox mentioned their own Viral modes, Viral Rage and Viral Fury. These modes come in two levels, Controlled and Feral. Controlled Viral states have the user still somewhat lucid and they can be reasoned with and talked down. They can also snap themselves out of the state once they complete their objective or run out of energy to sustain the mode.
> 
> Feral Viral states are far more dangerous, often causing massive damage to life and land. The user is completely consumed by the emotions driving this state and can only snap out of it once defeated or the emotions fueling the state run dry.
> 
> Both states have unique abilities tied to the personalities and skills of the user, with Feral states having far more devastating ones and Controlled states tending to utilize items, mechanics, or mobs to aid in combat.
> 
> Currently, Dream is in a Controlled state.


	15. 27. Mask

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Technoblade reveals what dark knowledge he holds about Sky Army and his reasons for wanting to keep his friends out of their sights as Dream recovers from his brief time in a Viral state.

27\. Mask *

They were cornered, trapped before a group of Illagers hellbent on smashing axes past the raised shields to reach them. BadBoyHalo and Sapnap braced themselves, shoulders pressed into the backs of their shields to give them additional support in keeping the Vindicators and their robed Illager supporters at bay. Behind them, George fired arrows at sporadic intervals, breathing hard from pain, the side of his shirt stained dark red around a slit in the fabric.

"They're not giving us a chance to hit back without taking damage!" Bad exclaimed helplessly. "George! Stay with us! How many hearts do you have?!"

"Th-three, but.. falling... I need food," the brunet huffed out, shaking hands drawing back another arrow to fire.

"We gave most of the food to Dream cuz he had the backpack!" Sapnap shouted in frustration, "Oh my god, I'm so **stupid**!"

George fired the arrow, knocking a robed Illager back into a cloud of smoke and particles, before slumping against the wall tiredly. "J-Just run, guys, I'll be fine. Just gonna lose my levels, is all," he mumbled, eyes closing. The two taller Avatars were pushed back further, crowding them closer to him.

Multiple clatterings of bones suddenly filled the hall. Bad and Sapnap looked at each other, paling even as resigned expressions came over them. Had they failed to rescue Dream after all? What would happen to him now, if the three of them died here and respawned back at the plains village inn, with another week's distance between them?

"We've still got the compass. We can find him, no matter where they take him," Bad finally said, quiet but determined. Sapnap swallowed and nodded. The clatter of bones grew louder and Illagers let out surprised noises as they were pulled away, snatched right off the floor and disappearing into hordes of pitch black skeletons.

"Wither Skeletons?! How did they escape the Nether?!" Sapnap yelled in shock, blinking as something else struck him. "Hey, they're attacking the Illagers!"

The crowd of Illagers turned, hacking and slashing at the Wither Skeletons, fighting even as they were pulled into the mass of black bones and crushed under their onslaught. Over the sounds of death and rattles, laughter rang out in the air, familiar and cackling and broken. The last of the gray-skinned mobs fell to the swords of the Wither Skeletons. Sapnap and Bad prepared to be attacked next but stared in disbelief as the undead creatures simply turned away from them and tore at the walls of the woodland mansion. Blocks were pulled down and flung aside, and for a moment the boys were reminded of a swarm of Endermen ripping a chunk apart block by block.

Finally, the source of the cackling, wheezing laughter came into view. From around the corner of the hallway, Dream limped over the carpet, leaning onto another Wither Skeleton's shoulder for support. Technoblade walked beside them, carrying Dream's mask in one hand and watching him in concern.

"Dream! What the frick is going on?!" Sapnap called out to him and held in a gasp as he caught sight of the eerie magenta color that had taken the place of Dream's normally green eyes. The blonde didn't seem to hear him, still laughing as he hobbled by, favoring a leg with an obvious dark stain over his calf. Techno drew close quickly, pushing past the other Power Class Avatar to check on George.

"Haven't you used a potion on him yet?" he demanded to know. Bad winced, still holding his shield in place as a precaution.

"We took a **lot** of damage getting this far, we weren't expecting _other_ Avatars to be here too!" he protested. "We used up the potions already; there was only one for each of us." Techno sighed, reaching out to brush George's hair aside. "Wh-what happened to Dream? What's with the Wither Skeletons?"

"Oh, right, gotta snap him out of that," Techno muttered and turned to call out to the laughing blonde. "Hey! Idiot! George is down! What the hell are you gonna do about it?!"

As though a disc was ripped out of a jukebox to bring music to a screeching halt, Dream's laughter cut out, the blonde spinning on one heel to about-face and nearly falling over. His unnaturally wide smile faded and fell as well, blood draining from his face while he finally registered what he was seeing. The Wither Skeleton with the glowing magenta eye sockets fell to pieces and vanished in a puff of pixelated clouds along with all the others as the same glowing light flickered and faded from Dream's eyes.

"George?" he whispered in disbelief before his voice raised to a near scream, _"George!"_ He dove for the brunet as George slid down to sitting against the wall, still taking shaky but measured breaths. "George! What _happened_?! How many hearts do you have?! Does anyone have a potion?!"

"We used them up," Sapnap told him worriedly, crouching down by both smaller Avatars with his damaged shield angled protectively over them. "All we have are the empty bottles." Dream held out a hand without looking.

"Give me one."

"One of the _empty_ bottles?" Bad asked incredulously, tilting his head and shooting a confused glance at Techno.

"I **know** it sounds crazy but give me one of the empty bottles _right now_!" Dream demanded louder, shaking his hand urgently. Sapnap flicked his hand to his empty bottle and placed it in Dream's hand. The group watched as he brought up the bottle's information screen and tapped at an icon in a corner of it. "C'mon, c'mon, give me something I can work with," Dream muttered as the screen flickered and changed, displaying new information and a timer. "45 second cooldown between uses, ok, I can use that. Hurry, _hurry_."

"There's a toggle on our items?" Bad asked in surprise, looking at his own bottle with new awareness.

"It's something I was testing out during my night watches, when I said I learned some stuff but was still thinking about it," Dream admitted, still watching the timer on the bottle, his free hand cradling George's face and rubbing comforting circles over his cheek with his thumb. "Some of our things are still following Minecraft mechanics, but they apparently also have Dungeons code added with different mechanics. That toggle icon on their info windows can let us switch which mode we want them to use. George's charm doesn't have one, obviously, but it said there was a cooldown after using it so I figure, why not other things we use?"

The empty bottle suddenly glowed as the timer expired and red liquid swirled into existence within the bottle, refilling it to max capacity. Dream poked the icon with the tip of his nose to set it back to Minecraftian rules, then pulled the cork out with his teeth, lifting the bottle to George's mouth and tilting it to get him to drink the potion. The brunet choked at first, opening his eyes a little to see what was going on. Recognizing the blonde looking up at him with a panicked expression George reached up to grab the bottle and finish off the potion, sighing in relief as his heart meter refilled to a more manageable eight hearts.

"Dream! You're okay!" the Brit exclaimed, pulling his friend close for a hug. Dream returned the hug with a breathless laugh that trailed into silence, going slack in George's arms. "Dream? _Dream!_ "

Techno crouched down and helped him and Sapnap carefully roll the green-clad Avatar off of George and onto the carpeted floor. He looked as though he were asleep, face a bit ashen and damp with sweat. "Hm, my contacts had a theory about this sort of thing. Said a 'Viral' mode could take a lot of energy from an Avatar and just wipe them out like this," the kingly Avatar told the worried group of friends. "Let's find someplace for him and George to get some rest." He held up the mask, checking it for damage, then carefully slipped it over Dream's head, adjusting it until it covered his face again and leaving only his mouth in view.

"There should be bedrooms back that way, and I saw a map room on the way to this wing of the mansion," Sapnap pointed out, gesturing down the hall with one arm. He crouched as well, turning his back to George. "Alright, Gogy, climb on; you're still healing and I'm not risking you gettin' more injured somehow." The brunet flushed with a scowl but gingerly climbed onto Sapnap's back, clinging to his shoulders while Sapnap supported his legs. Nearby, Bad helped put Dream into a similar position on Technoblade's back.

They walked on together, searching for the bedrooms.

\---

"Techno, not to sound like you're sus or anything," Sapnap said sometime later, sitting at a table in one of the master bedrooms and watching Bad echo Dream's actions with his empty potion bottle, "but it kinda feels like you know a lot more about what's going on with Dream than we do. At least, when it comes to the Herobrine Virus and what all it did.. **is** doing to him." He looked over at the pink-haired Avatar sitting across from him. Techno sipped at a cup of tea, taking a moment to reply. The ravenet allowed it, going back to watch Bad uncork the refilled potion, lift Dream's head from the pillow of the large bed he lay in, and carefully pour it into his mouth a bit at a time to heal his injured leg.

"Do you want to know **why** I told you guys, when we became friends, to stay away from Sky Army?" Techno finally asked quietly, lifting one hand to rub at his temple. "It's because I know what they're capable of if they feel like Minecraftia is being threatened. I _know_ what lengths they'll go to in order to secure victory in a war against Herobrine. I **know** what the Recruits can do and **will** do to keep power in their hands, and use it against Herobrine." He sighed, meeting Sapnap's eyes with a pained expression. "I know, because **I** used to be a Recruit." Bad turned his head to stare at him in shock, expression mirrored on Sapnap's face.

" _You_ were one of them? You were Awakened _during_ the Viral Wars?" George asked from his place in the bed beside Dream, brown eyes wide with surprise. "Why didn't you ever tell us?" Techno cringed a bit, fingertips tapping nervously against the ceramic teacup.

"Didn't think I'd ever have to; you all seemed pretty content to do your manhunt and challenges stuff and none of that had anything to do with what Sky Army does on a regular basis," he answered and then gestured irritably with one hand. "Then I had to find out by **accident** that Dream went and joined them anyway! That was the **worst** possible move! The _worst possible thing to do_ when he and his Player are blowin' up on Youtube!"

"Why?" Sapnap questioned suspiciously. Techno exhaled heavily, burying his hands in his hair as he rested his elbows on the table, gathering his composure.

"Because that would eventually land him on Sky Army's radar as a potential threat to their control over the Overworld, as Sky Army's power is fed by the amount of influence Sky has through **his** Player," he said as evenly as he could, holding up a hand as Sapnap and Bad began to protest. "Listen, let me explain it. Sky Army is, for all intents and purposes, a force of good. But even good can do bad things if they believe it's for the good of all," Techno went on. "Just like their leader, SkythekidRS, the goodness can be just a mask, hiding a lot of dark under the surface that likes to pop up if you poke at their sensitive bits the right way. Before The Convergence, Recruits were likely to smile at you and shake with one hand while hiding a sword behind their backs with the other. After Sky and his right-hand man's exile, Recruits will smile and shake your hand with that sword in plain view."

He sat back in his chair, arms folding over his chest. "I wasn't that high up in the ranks back then. I was Awakened and drafted into the Army for my pvp skills, but I was better in the frontlines as a fighter than as some leader ordering other Recruits around, so I never advanced the ladder and after the Wars ended I got out of Sky Army, never looked back. But it was more commonly known back then what Sky could do as the Herobrine Anti-Virus; the powers he had in Viral state, what **he** could do, what it did _to him_ in return." Techno gestured towards the sleeping Dream. "That's what Dream is now; the Herobrine Anti-Virus. There's just one problem, one difference, that makes Dream an undeniable threat to Sky Army and their power."

Sapnap leaned forward, focused on the kingly Avatar. Techno glared at his hands, wrapped around the teacup as if trying to drain warmth from the ceramic.

"Sky's power was devastating at its peak; by himself he tore down a massive prison and sent the blocks flying for miles, leaving only a crater behind, or so I've been told. But the thing is, see, Sapnap, _the thing that everyone tends to forget is_.. Sky was infected with only a **fraction** of the Herobrine Virus," he hissed, eye twitching. "A fraction!"

Bad gasped suddenly, hands flying up to his mouth as his and Sapnap's eyes widened in realization, George swallowing hard as he caught on as well. "Dream has the _complete_ Herobrine Virus," the Brit said in a soft, horrified voice.

"So the thing with the Wither Skeletons? The glowing eyes? That was something to do with a Viral mode for Dream?" Sapnap interjected and looked around at the ruined mansion. "This place is still standing, though, and it didn't even last that long!"

"He was holding back," Techno told him curtly. "Don't delude yourself into thinking Dream isn't able to do a lot more destruction than this. You've been on the business end of his traps; imagine him doing that on a _biome-wide scale_. There'd be no escape." He twirled a finger around. "The only reason this place is still standing, even gutted like this, is cuz you three were inside and he was hellbent on getting back to you. That's why I told you to stick together; you're all that'll keep him from getting lost in his own head if this mess happens again."

Gloomy silence fell over the room. The sun was sinking lower in the sky, bathing the group in a warm glow of orange that did nothing to the chill sinking into their bones at the understanding that the golden fixture of peace and immunizing power that was the Sky Army was a front, hiding the machinations that went on behind the scenes to maintain law and order in Minecraftia. Sapnap licked his lips, eyes darting from the floor to meet Techno's again.

"Those Avatars we fought and killed here.. the ones with elytras.. they were Recruits, weren't they?" he asked in a low voice. Techno nodded. "How did they know to come here?"

"I don't know, but they've all seen Dream, they know his name, they know he's got the Herobrine Virus, but they don't know he's got the artifacts that made him the Anti-Virus." Techno ran a hand through his hair. "They must have some way of tracking him to come straight here, but I'm positive I destroyed all the Manhunt Compasses. Still, just them knowing this much about Dream, about all of us traveling with him, protecting him, we're on their hitlist for sure."

"They're gonna try to meme us **all**?! But **we're** trying to find a way to get rid of the Virus _without_ losing Dream!" Bad protested, getting up to pace nervously. "Why won't they help us with that? Why meme us?!"

"That's just the optimistic outcome," Techno told him flatly and looked at Sapnap seriously. "There's a dark secret Sky Army kept hidden for much of the Viral Wars, a secret that was revealed in the final confrontation with Herobrine during The Convergence. What I'm about to tell you **needs** to sink into your heads, because if we can't solve this, if we can't get Herobrine out of Dream's body..." He trailed off, shaking his head as he looked past the ravenet. He sucked in a deep breath, then let it out slowly, fingernails scratching slowly over the surface of the table. "During the Viral Wars, an Avatar was discovered to have a unique skill for writing stories; he studied the Avatars who would be in those stories until he was able to recreate them near perfectly. From their mannerisms and way of speaking, to the very thoughts they could have and their tactics in approaching situations, this Avatar could mirror them to the last detail in his writing. This made him incredibly valuable as a source of information and as a spy. But he wasn't Awakened, he was still just a shell Avatar for his Player."

Techno lowered his gaze to the scratches on the table, idly tracing his nail over them to deepen the lines. "Sky Army decided to weaponize the Avatar and his skill, forcing him Awake and modifying his Core File to include an always active mod that let him become _any_ Avatar he observed and studied, including SkythekidRS himself," he went on quietly. "In that final battle, he was sacrificed to restore Sky to himself after Herobrine hijacked his Core File, as it turned out the modified Core File in that weaponized Avatar was made with a copy of Sky's Core File. He had a _backup_ of himself **buried within** that other Avatar. No one knows what became of that other Avatar after The Convergence was over and Herobrine's physical body was destroyed." His eyes flicked back up to Sapnap as he moved his hand, dipping a bloodied fingertip into the cold tea in his cup. "If Sky Army gets their hands on Dream, with the complete and dormant Herobrine Viral Code in him, I don't doubt they will weaponize him too, and use him to seize control over the Nether and the Cultists that live there."

\---

"How come you guys get horses and you didn't buy one for me?" Dream pouted in the morning, stamping a foot in childish frustration as the group packed up what supplies they could from the mansion's storage rooms and prepared to leave.

"You can tame your own, you got a saddle from the stables, I saw you," Sapnap pointed out with a grin and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "Hop on, you can ride with me for now." No one spoke about what they had learned the previous day, not while Dream was awake. There was simply the shared understanding that they had to keep moving, had to dodge the Recruits with all the skill they had.

Dream hopped up onto the horse behind Sapnap, hugging the ravenet from behind with a grin, "Have I mentioned how much I love you guys? Thanks for coming to my rescue, but seriously, **fuck** spiders."

_"Language!"_

"At least I made back my money," Techno said with a grin. "So many emeralds just all over the place."

"So, we made it to the woodland mansion, and the map room says there's two extreme hills biomes near Sky Capital, one to the northwest and one more directly north of the city. Which one should we try?" George asked as they started riding away from the mansion, heading north until a final decision was made. Dream flapped a hand aimlessly, resting his face against Sapnap's back. "Dream, what does that even _mean_?" the brunet asked with a laugh.

"North-north!" Dream called out, ignoring Techno declaring, _'See?! I **told** you you can't read maps!'_. The cheerful expression on the mask as he smiled at his friends helped to ease the burden of the knowledge they had gained.

They wore masks of smiles and cheer to keep Dream from knowing what could potentially happen to him... and Dream wore masks of smiles and cheer to hide what he decided to do after waking up midway through Techno's explanations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the sake of the story, regardless of real life status at the time of TC popularity peak, Technoblade was a Recruit during the Viral Wars, as just about all non-Cultist Avatars Awakened during that time were drafted into Sky Army to fight against Herobrine, especially if the Avatar's Player had skills that made them desirable to have in war time. After Herobrine's defeat, Minecraftia took over the Awakening process, and Avatars were able to leave Sky Army to be Free Avatars, taking up lives and professions of their own choosing.
> 
> Technoblade left to become a Free Avatar; Dream, Sapnap, BadBoyHalo, and George, among others, were Awakened as Free Avatars and were never drafted.
> 
> I love Sky and the Sky Army, been a huge fan of TeamCrafted back in the day and have a lot of nostalgia for them. However, in this story, Sky Army is suffering from a lot of issues that stemmed from what they did during those Viral Wars, including the fact that for some of them, it feels like the war hasn't truly ended or that if they acknowledge that the war is over, they'll lose their sense of purpose or be consumed by the guilt and horror of the things they did for survival. Some, like Sapphira, became Disillusioned, Recruits who no longer follow the original spirit of what Sky Army was meant to be and twisted the path they now walk.
> 
> Original prompt was 'thread'.


	16. 48. Past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A brief glimpse back at what caused Sky and Deadlox to leave, their wishes for the future of Sky Army, and the realization that those wishes may be being subverted with the discovery of Dream's existence.

48\. Past

Blocks continued to spread over the streets of L.A., replacing pavement with stained clay, concrete with stone, transforming portions of the city into Minecraft counterparts as Herobrine, fully in control of Sky's body and voice after consuming and overwriting his Core File, continued singing from the building He took over with the aid of the mad programmer Judas and his hired guns.

There was fighting in the streets, among all the changing landscapes, between mobs, Cultists, Avatars, and humans. Sky Army defended their Players and humans as best they could between strikes against their enemies. But with sunset approaching, the frontline would be overwhelmed soon, and casualties would mount ever higher.

On a nearby building, Setosorcerer looked over the battlegrounds and the figure of the leader of Sky Army under enemy control, and took a shaky breath. The steps he took to prepare for this moment had been long and arduous, but it would all come down to this. If this was carried out according to his plan, Sky would be restored, Herobrine would be defeated, and The Convergence would be reversed. Minecraftia and Earth would be saved. He adjusted his white gloves nervously and looked aside at his companion.

A Speed-Class Avatar dressed in dark gray, black, and purple clothes resembling a mage stood by him, watching the events unfold with a worried expression. Expressive violet eyes took in the actions of everyone below, gathering information quickly that he scribbled out into a book with his quill.

"This is it. This is the moment I've anticipated would come," Seto murmured and the smaller Avatar turned to look at him, studying him intently. "You were modified for this reason, far above Sky's wish to have someone to counter his and Deadlox's Viral powers. Are you ready?"

The mage remained focused on him, eye contact never wavering. "What do you need?" he finally asked.

"Restore Sky's Core File with the copy I installed in yours, by any means necessary," Seto commanded. The mage continued to focus on him, then slowly nodded once.

"I'll see what I can do," he returned and flicked his hand, replacing the book and quill with an Ender Pearl. He held his other hand forward, concentrating. "I read you, SkythekidRS. I read you and write you onto myself." Pages of paper pixelated into existence around the Avatar, pressing against his limbs and clothes and glowing into a steadily brightening light. "Beyond AvecPardon, beyond AvecthekidEE, to the very depths of who you are, that is who I will be!" The light swelled and encased the Avatar, hiding his form from sight. "Mimic Mode: SkythekidRS!"

When the light burst apart, a replica of the Sky Army leader stood where the mage once did. The other Sky threw the pearl towards the building Herobrine stood on and blipped away in a flash of purple particles, leaving Seto to hope that the failsafe would work and end the war for good.

\---

_**"Seto!"**_ Sky's voice was equal parts fury and grief as he stormed up to the sorcerer in the code research labs. He stopped in front of the other Avatar and slammed a fist on the table next to them. "You overstepped the line back there! You had no right, _NO RIGHT_ , to ask my Third to give up his life for me like that!" Seto glared back at him coolly.

"It was a hard decision and he _agreed_ to it; his life in exchange for yours to allow us to save two worlds and end the war," he argued back. "I think he'd say that was a perfectly acceptable trade. You already know he'd do anything to support you; this shouldn't be a shock to you!"

"Lives shouldn't be traded like that at all! I had faith you and our friends would be able to think of a plan, something else to get me back or stop the song!" Sky snapped back.

"This was faster!"

"It was **wrong**!"

"The war is still over, isn't it?!" Seto declared, throwing up his hands and walking away. "Besides, you're one to talk; _you're_ the one who gave the original order to weaponize him in the first place! Don't craft the sword if you don't plan to swing it!"

"Don't turn this around on me! He was supposed to _only_ counter me and Deadlox if we lost control of ourselves in Feral Viral Mode!" Sky followed after him. "He was supposed to **live**! He had a library! He had a life that I _promised_ he could go back to living after we finished the war!"

Seto spun around and folded his arms over his chest, huffing indignantly. "He helped us save Minecraftia from that programmer's abuse of your voice and power," he pointed out icily. "His death wasn't in vain; Minecraftia may be unstable from reversing The Convergence and yeah, there's still Cultists that escaped the final battle, but you're alive and we can keep the Overworld safe. Herobrine is _gone_ , He's not coming back; we've **won**. Be thankful for it."

Sky watched him walk away and shook his head, eyes shining gold instead of the usual hazel. "No, it's **not** over. Those Cultists are still going to want to keep bringing Him back, and more deaths will happen because of me," he growled. "Time to change the equation and put an end to this cycle for good."

\---

_"Exile?!"_ the group of Avatars that made up TeamCrafted and friends exclaimed together, horrified expressions on their faces. Sky and Deadlox both nodded, one looking stern, the other apathetic as always.

"We've talked it out with the awareness of Minecraftia; it agrees with us," Sky returned flatly. "As long as we're here, me and Deadlox, those Cultists and whatever Squidlings they converted to join them will keep trying to get to us to revive Herobrine through the fragment of code that's in my body. That will just lead to more wars, more fighting, more Avatars dying in my name. **Enough.** I'm removing that temptation by removing myself. Deadlox is doing the same."

"I dun like what we did to ourselves to win," Deadlox muttered. "He was my friend too. And we treated him like a Plan B, the arrow to shoot at us if we lost control. And and and against Herobrine, he was led to think the best way to help us was to **die** for us. If we had to sacrifice somebody to win, did we _actually_ win?"

"But, we still need immunizing, cleansing; there's still sections of Minecraftia that are infected and we can't get into those chunks," Ssundee pointed out carefully. "We can't do any of that without you." The Anti-Viral Avatars looked at each other and nodded.

"We talked that out with Minecraftia, too. It'll take over Awakening Avatars to help spread butter in the network for immunizing," Sky returned, grabbing his amulet and lifting over his head to take it off. Beside him, Deadlox took off his headset and tossed his head, flicking his hair back into place. "Zip, TrueMU, c'mere."

Logdotzip and TrueMU stepped forward warily. Sky and Deadlox held out the shimmering items to them. "The last of our Viral coding is inside these so they can keep making the immunization aura without us. Me and Deadlox are fully immune now, so we don't need these anymore," Sky told them, placing the amulet in Logdotzip's hands. "Put them at the heart of the butter network and they'll keep up the immunizing flow in our place." Deadlox's headset went into TrueMu's hands.

"But, who will lead Sky Army, if you leave us?" JeromeASF asked between sniffles. "You're our friends, and our leaders.. what'll happen to us?"

"Zip and TrueMU, I trust you guys to take over for us," Sky said with a grin. "My best friends, next to Deadlox, of course; I know with you two leading, Sky Army will continue to protect Avatars as they spread out and live their lives. No more fighting wars, no more drafting new Recruits, no more chasing after anyone with unique skills to put them to work as a Recruit. Let people live, let them be **free**. Just protect them. That's all I want." His smile faded, his expression now cold, eyes flickering gold. "No more using Avatars as weapons."

The group nodded in unison, and Sky went back to his cheerful smile, waving at them as he backed away. Deadlox rocked on his heels before following him. "See you in the upper servers," he called out before both Avatars blinked upward in beams of light.

_[SkythekidRS has left the game.]_

_[Deadlox has left the game.]_

\---

Today~

Deadlox marched into SkyHub Orbital Fortress, visible eye flashing scarlet and deep blue in alternating color. "Dream's been located and attacked," he announced without any prompting. Sky turned away from the golden pillar, golden eyes gleaming.

" _How?_ By **who**?" he demanded.

"It was hard to get a visual, but it looked like Recruits from the aerial assault division," Deadlox replied, bringing up a screen and typing commands in rapidly. Sky gave him a puzzled look. "The elytra unit; we didn't have that during our time here, they're from a more recent update to Minecraft. Special wings can be found in the End that can let Avatars fly in Survival using fireworks as rocket boosters." He finished typing and threw the screen forward as it enlarged and displayed an image.

Several Wither Skeletons swarming over Avatars with shimmering enchanted capes, armor, and blue neckerchiefs bound with gold clasps, fighting gray-skilled villager mobs, and all under Dream's direction, the green-hooded Avatar laughing with glowing magenta eyes, his mask gone from his face. Sky looked at the image aghast.

"I _wondered_ why I felt the urge to call up Viral Rage; he's had his own Viral Mode triggered!" he whispered and pointed at the neckerchiefs. "Those are Sky Army colors! How did these Recruits find him before we did?!"

"Dunno. I managed to get into one of the Wither Skeletons he summoned, but it was hard as fuck to do it. He _definitely_ has a lot more Viral power than I thought he did," Deadlox returned, his eye returning to its usual scarlet color. "Couldn't hold it for long, but I managed to see a couple of the Recruits try and grab him with leads on hand. Looked like they were trying to capture him alive."

Sky narrowed his eyes at the image floating before them, thinking over Deadlox's observations. "Who gave the order to deploy them?" he asked suddenly. The russet-haired Avatar shrugged. "Something's not right. If the _Council_ didn't order them, and **I** didn't.. someone is usurping control of the Recruits," Sky muttered and clenched his teeth angrily.

"This is **BULLSHIT**!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song Herobrine!Sky was singing that was causing The Convergence: [Live in Minecraft](https://youtu.be/IrQ_l0_2DTc)


	17. 37. Running

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minecraftia's instability grows as more of Dungeons' mechanics and level layouts merge into the world structure, putting greater pressure on the Dream Team/Muffinteers to survive the environment as well as fend off attacks from the Disillusioned Recruits and the Herobrine Cultists. Dream is fed up with the feuding factions getting his friends needlessly hurt and takes matters into his own hands the best way he knows how.

37\. Running

"Dungeons suck ass," Sapnap grumbled from his seat at the campfire.

 _"Language!"_ Bad scolded before softening his voice. "You sure you're okay? Those were some nasty hits you took back there." The demonic Avatar wrapped the ravenet's arm in strips of fabric made from slicing apart a Recruit's cape, bandaging one of several wounds Sapnap had gained in the course of the group running through the jungle temple. They had expected the usual small set of rooms with the lever puzzle and easily disarmed traps; they got instead a maze, several ambushes, and a group of Recruits waiting to jump them at the exit. Through it all, Sapnap and Techno fought through many of the threats aggressively, resulting in injuries that drained their healing potions repeatedly and left lingering physical damage.

Nearby, Dream and George helped with bandaging Techno's leg and splinting one arm. "I **told** you Recruits get aggressive when they think they're being threatened!" he complained in a sour mood. "It's like they don't even think diplomacy exists! Can't just sit down and talk things out over tea, no, it's all swords, swords, _swords_!"

"At least we got to see how they're tracking Dream," George said, a frown on his face as he thought back to the diamond compass he spotted. "They didn't know anything about Dream, so they couldn't have programmed the compass to track him as an Avatar. But they're all about Herobrine and getting rid of Him, so it's probably coded to look for the densest concentration of the Virus." He sat back and looked down at his own bandages, blue strips wound around his left hand and forearm after a fire-enchanted sword came down on his arm when the shield was destroyed by the hit. "They're taking this too far, don't you think?" he asked rhetorically.

Dream pushed his mask up to the top of his head, giving the brunet a faintly guilty look. George just shook his head at him, giving him a stern look in return. Dream's expression turned rueful and George grinned, holding out his uninjured fist for a bump to cheer him up. The blonde touched knuckles with him, smiling back more genuinely.

They had been traveling for the better part of a week and their journey took on strange elements to it as they moved. What looked like supply dumps of chests full of food, potions, materials, and travel equipment seemed to be plopped in their paths every now and then. Sapnap and Techno were suspicious at first, approaching the chests first to examine and make sure there were no traps or tricks before bringing the goods back to sort through and share among the group. Despite the goods being safe, the Power Avatars continued to be distrustful of 'lucky breaks'.

A few days back they had made a stop at a village to rest for a night, only to be awoken by the windows to Dream and George's room being broken into by Avatars in red capes and bandanas. Both Avatars were being dragged out of the room, mouths covered to prevent either of them from calling for help. The noise of the glass shattering brought Sapnap to the room to yell at them for waking him up and he was able to get the others to join in when he roared after the would-be kidnappers. There were no more village stops after that and the trust issues mounted a little higher.

"I don't get why our physical code is getting damaged too," Sapnap muttered, carefully moving his arm around after Bad finished bandaging it. "Has Minecraftia's glitching and bringing in Dungeons crap also messed with that? We can't even heal it with potions!"

"Seems like the Recruits are taking advantage of whatever is causing that to wear us down," Dream sighed, sitting back to open up the backpack inventory and pull out food to pass around. "At least those injuries can heal over time as long as we stay in one place."

Except staying in one place was dangerous, leaving them vulnerable to being ambushed by one or another group of Avatars hellbent on grabbing Dream for whatever reasons. The group ate in silence, trying to ignore the aches and pains of those lingering injuries. Bad moved around the camp, placing torches to extend the light and keep hostile mobs at bay, then returned to the group to take a seat on a log, shield and sword in hand. Techno shifted around, trying to get comfortable with a fractured arm and injured leg, dozing off with his rapier in his grip, paranoid about late night ambushes after the village encounter.

On the other side of the campfire, Sapnap and George had plans to sandwich Dream between them protectively; Dream complained loudly until Sapnap shut him up by growling that he was tall enough to be able to keep contact with both Speed Avatars so he'd know immediately if anyone tried to take his best friends from him while they slept. He also wanted cuddles, just because. The three of them slept in a heap, limbs tangled and clinging to each other for safety.

In the morning, they took votes on staying to heal or moving on in their search for Fundy. Sapnap had sent a message to the fox-like Avatar about needing to meet about his codework, so Fundy was already preparing materials and brushing up on his knowledge for assisting when they arrived. Dream had wanted to stay put until everyone had fully recovered, but he and Bad were outvoted by the others wanting to press on.

The horses carried them onwards, and day by day Dream seemed to withdraw into himself more. Each member of the party of friends tried to suss out what was wrong with him but only got empty smiles, Dream's face hidden by his mask as always.

\---

At the peak of a large hill, the group was able to spot a village sprawled in the savannah, colorful wooden houses and buildings standing out against the drab grasses and acacia trees. Dream narrowed his eyes at it, thinking, before jerking in his saddle out of surprise at the sound of his name.

"Hey, Dream! We're gonna set up camp here; how about you go and get some wood for us?" Sapnap called up from a cave on the side of the hill.

"Sure. Techno, come with me so I'm not bored doing it," Dream called back with a grin. He turned his horse aside to pick out a safe path down to the plains while Techno grumbled and groused about his arm but eventually followed him.

It took three trees being felled before Techno spoke up. "You don't actually _need_ me here to watch after you collecting wood, so what is it that you're really after?" the kingly Avatar asked evenly, leaning against a tree and watching Dream collect sticks and saplings from the decaying leaves.

"Can't hide much from you, can I?" the green-cloaked Avatar returned with a sardonic grin, walking up to join him. "I need you to do me a favor, to keep the others safe," Dream went on, gesturing in the direction of the camp. Techno raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Safe? Safe from wha- you heard my story, didn't you," his tone shifted from puzzled to flat in the same breath, blue eyes turning flinty and cold. "Fundy isn't actually directly north of Sky Capital; you're redirecting us _away_ from him." Dream didn't say anything, mouth still neutral while his mask continued smiling falsely. Techno glared at him. "I don't like it, and I'm probably going to either kick your ass for it later or hold it over your head for a favor of my own, but what is it that you need?"

Dream sighed, looking into the distance. "I need.. for you.. to get me the Manhunt Compass from George," he finally got his words out, tapping his fingertips together. He tilted his head when Techno stared at him. "You said Sky Army would make me a weapon, if given the chance. I'm not letting them **have** that chance. No one controls me, no one **owns** me, and if these assholes are going to keep coming after my friends because of me, then I'm taking that temptation away from them."

Techno gave him a baffled look, tilting his own head as well. "How the hell are you gonna do that?" he asked and Dream smiled at him, wide and toothy.

"I'm gonna speedrun Minecraftia."

They returned to the camp and Dream handed over a large portion of the wood he gathered to Sapnap before heading over to sit by Bad at the campfire and watch him cook dinner. George and Sapnap busied themselves with fortifying the cave into something more habitable and defensible while Techno placed a few chests down and stowed a portion of his inventory into it.

"Since we're going to be spending a couple days here to finish healing, let's take the time to reorganize our supplies," the kingly Avatar said with a small smile, "so we don't fall into another situation where one person is carrying all the food."

"That was Sapnap's stupid idea," George quickly pointed out and uttered a little shriek as the ravenet jumped him, tackling him to the ground. "He's killing me! _He's killing me!_ Make him **stop**!"

"Sapnap, stop killing George," Dream drawled out boredly, resting his cheek in one hand and poking at the pork cooking on the campfire, "you know that's my thing to do." He smirked as Sapnap sat up on George's stomach to squint at him thoughtfully, the brunet taking the time to slap upwards at his face in retaliation.

"Eh, fine," Sapnap finally said with a careless shrug and rolled off and away towards Techno. The pink-haired Avatar put out a foot to stop him from colliding with him and simply raised an eyebrow at the athlete blinking up at him. "So which chest do I put my stuff into?"

"Just fill whichever, it's all gonna get resorted anyway," Techno told him with a shrug, walking off. "You too, George, Dream, Bad." The three Avatars nodded while Sapnap rummaged through the chest, emptying his inventory into it. "We'll sort it out in the morning, so just dump your junk and let's eat. What's on the menu, Bad?"

The demonic Avatar smiled, eyes turning into crescent moon slices as he held up a plate. "Pork curry!" he declared. Techno's eye twitched and he drew his cape a little tighter around himself.

The usual night sounds of distant zombie groans and skeleton clacking made for familiar ambiance as the Avatars slept on crafted beds placed near the campfire. Techno took first watch and gazed out at the savannah through a single glass block placed in the wooden wall blocking the entrance to the cave. Now and then he looked back at the group as each Avatar finished up their nightly routine and went to bed.

Dream was first to flop into his bed after taking a bath in a makeshift pond in the back of the cave, sprawling out on the blanket and drooling onto his pillow. Bad walked over and carefully maneuvered his limbs under the blanket, pulling it higher over his shoulder and tucking it in, then tapping Dream's mask between the 'eyes' to collapse the wireframe model away into goggles. He carefully moved the goggles to rest on top of Dream's head, checked to make sure they were securely fastened, then smiled gently as he patted the other Avatar on the head. Sapnap and George bickered over who was next to use the pond while Bad pulled up a chat screen while laying in his own bed to message Skeppy until he grew too drowsy to maintain the connection.

One after another, the rest of the Muffinteers drifted off. Techno waited and watched and once he felt enough time had passed that George, Sapnap, and Bad were deep enough asleep, he got up and moved to the chests. He searched through each one until he found the Manhunt Compass and plucked it out. With it in hand, Techno quietly made his way to Dream's bed and reached down to poke him on the nose, pausing when Dream opened one eye to stare up at him, a smile spreading mischievously on his face.

"You weren't sleeping at all, huh?" Techno stated more than asked, his voice soft so as to not disturb anyone else. He stepped back as Dream got out of bed and gathered it into his inventory. "As promised, George's Manhunt Compass," the kingly Avatar said, holding out the enchanted compass. "For what it's worth, I think your plan's stupid, and you really should listen to my advice when I said to stick with your friends so you stay sane and in control of yourself."

"Yeah, well," Dream drawled out, grabbing the compass from him with a deadpan expression, "that was **before** warring factions decided to try kidnapping George alongside me, cut up Sapnap, and broke your arm." His eyes flickered from green to magenta for a split second, "What they're doing just to get their hands on me is bullshit and I'm not having my friends mixed up in it. I'll find Fundy and see if Herobrine can be pulled out of me and if not, then I speedrun Minecraftia." He shook his head hard, pressing the heel of one hand to an eye and hissing under his breath. Techno pointed at him sternly.

"Look, you're already feeling side effects from that Viral Mode. I really think you should stay with us and we all go visit Fundy together," he told the smaller Avatar and gestured wildly around. "Did you even tell Clay what happened?! Sky's Player's soul would also burn whenever he used immunization songs and from what I heard, he'd get backlash from Sky's Viral Modes too."

"Won't happen," Dream grumbled. "Sky Army handbook said Avatars don't have to worry about spillover to their Players anymore, that Minecraftia fixed it so the soul-link doesn't allow for whatever affects an Avatar to bleed over into the Player. Probably to prevent more stuff happening like with Sky and his Player." He pocketed the compass and glanced over at the sleeping Avatars. "Clay's fine, and he's gonna _stay_ that way. Got enough on his plate without needing to deal with my bullshit situation too."

"This feels like it's going to come back and bite us all in the butts, and when it does, I'm within my rights to say 'I told you so' and laugh," Techno retorted with a huff and a roll of his eyes. Dream gave him a lopsided smile, laughing softly at the older Avatar's antics.

"I promise, if I do fuck up, I will definitely survive so you can do all that and more, alright?" he returned and checked his inventory screen with a considering hum. "I think I'm gonna need a bit more gold and iron. Check that chest for some while I check this one?" Dream asked, pointing at one of the double chests while he knelt at another and carefully opened it to keep the sound effect down.

"I didn't charge Sky Army enough for dealing with a bunch of Tommys and Tubbos," Techno sighed but headed over to crouch at the other chest and search. "How many ingots do-?"

A sharp pain bloomed in one spot on his head and Techno slumped over the chest in an unconscious heap, Dream standing behind him with his axe in hand and a regretful expression mirrored onto his mask. "Sorry, but I need more than the ten minute head start you were probably going to give me before waking everyone else up," he apologized and carefully wrapped one of Techno's hands loosely around a bottle of healing potion. With that done, he took one last look at his friends sleeping peacefully in their beds, checked his inventory of basic supplies, then quietly left the cavern.

The horses were tied outside by their leads to fence posts. Dream undid those and watched the animals wander away in their rambling search for food before jumping onto his own horse and pointing himself north-west. Hostile mobs still speckled the distance but it was best to not wait for sunrise. He dug in his heels and headed off at a steady pace, gaining speed as the hill turned to level ground. Once he was on flat land, Dream nudged the horse into a full gallop, leaving the savannah for a desert biome.

The camp was little more than a bump on a distant hill behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dream's Flight Arc Theme: [Once in a Dream by In The City](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nr3hQxO6Snc)
> 
> This isn't the first time an Avatar has had damage inflicted to their character model; similar injuries happened to SkythekidRS during the Viral Wars, and were repaired by another Avatar opening his model file and rebuilding the damaged code using a clean copy stored in the Mojang servers. The differences between these incidents was that in the Viral Wars this type of damage had to be manually repaired; post-Convergence, Avatars who are 'physically' damaged can repair the damaged code over time while sleeping, since sleep is the best time to do file changes without causing pain to the Avatar.
> 
> The other type of physical damage, cause by pvp or pve encounters, harm the body but not the body's code, so they're easier to heal from and only require food or potions. These injuries can bleed; code damage only distorts the damaged parts of an Avatar, hence why different forms of treatment are needed to keep it stable while the code repairs and replaces.


	18. 22. Unknown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There are a great many unknowns for the groups to sort through when it comes to tracking down Dream and figuring out how much of a threat he is. Sky decides to confront Dream directly in hopes of training the new Herobrine Anti-Virus, while Minecraftia brings another unknown variable into the world.

22\. Unknown *

Stacy had nursed her fair share of wounds when it came to her pride taking blows. The realization that everything Sky Army had done in the name of 'protecting' other Living Avatars during the Viral Wars had come at the cost of other Avatars' lives had given her several in rapid succession. That's why she was here, now **and** back then, looking for Herobrine's revival. If lives didn't matter, if **life** didn't matter, then it was totally fine to just wipe out all life in Minecraftia. To return them all to the way they had been before, just little models for Players to toy with for their amusement, painless and carefree.

This _particular_ blow to her pride had her sulking; the failure to properly capture Dream and his roommate in that village inn had been an apparent final straw for Kothra. She and her team were given orders to stay put until he arrived himself to oversee the retrieval of the host body. So here she was, kicking at a fallen jungle tree while the other Cultists sat around a campfire, eating bowls of rabbit stew.

Her compass pointed more westward now. Dream was moving away from the northeastern path and no one had been able to figure out why he changed direction yet again. Where was he going? What was he up to? Was he just trying to avoid running into anyone at all?

There was a distant odd sound that caught her attention, almost metallic, like blades whirling through air, then the splash of water along with a muffled impact. Stacy stopped kicking at the poor log and looked over her shoulder with a pout. Kothra emerged from the shadows of the jungle trees nearby, trident loosely held in one hand. "It would have been faster to come with an elytra," she pointed out in lieu of a greeting.

"The elytra doesn't also act as a weapon and I've greater skill with water combat than air combat," Kothra replied and the flower-crowned Avatar nodded in understanding.

"Right, right, you used to be a Squidling," she said and waved her hands around. "Kothra, _what_ is going **on**?! There's been enchanted mobs and weird drops from them and armor I've never seen before!" she went on rambling and threw an arm in the direction of one of the other Cultists. "MilkyMomma got a thing of wheat and every time she shakes it, a llama spawns! What's up with **that**?!"

"We're still accumulating information from agents in the field, but the general consensus is code, items, mechanics, and mobs from Minecraft Dungeons are being imported into Minecraftia to increase the difficulty of survival," the Power Avatar explained, twirling the trident before flicking it away. "Change of orders. Stacy, you and I will continue the hunt for Lord Herobrine's vessel ourselves. All others, move out to the Nether Portal located at one of Sky Army's supply towns, Pumpkin Pastures. You're to provide additional support to the Cultists currently engaging with the Recruits there. Coordinates will be sent by the commander of that unit."

There were salutes all around and the group of Avatars gathered up their things and took to their horses, galloping off. Stacy and Kothra looked at one another and nodded resolutely, turning together and running into the jungle, following the direction the Herobrine Compass pointed.

\---

"Who deployed the elytra unit?" Sky asked in a cold, quiet tone, eyes roaming over the members of the Sky Army High Council. Logdotzip and TrueMU looked at each other in alarm, then at the other Avatars. Deadlox gave Sky a sharp glare, eyes wide and face pale; Sky was aware of why he was getting that look. Asking would leave him open to questions aimed at him, questions that could lead to revealing the information that Dream was out there, with the artifacts sealing Herobrine inside him and Sky wanted so, so badly to leave the city and go to him to train him and pass on the book of experiences for reference.

But something poisonous was creeping through the ranks of Sky Army and he couldn't trust the Recruits to not be up to something.

"Odd, we thought that was **you** ," Ssundee replied in confusion. "Isn't that why you called the meeting? To discuss what the Recruits found?"

And if _that_ didn't raise all sorts of red flags in his head, Sky wasn't sure what else could. He swallowed, throat dry, as his gaze flicked to Deadlox and then back to the others. "It wasn't me or Deadlox, but what did they discover?"

"Other than I might've gotten scammed out of a lotta emeralds from our construction budget?" Logdotzip muttered, flicking his fingers at the pages spread in front of him on the table. He sighed and tapped at the paper. "They found the Herobrine Virus host west of the city, in a woodland mansion. The unit was pretty much wiped out by him almost single handedly, so we're dealing with a potentially dangerous Avatar."

No surprise; Viral Modes were always devastating and it was rare for an Avatar to survive a fight against him or Deadlox in that state. At least, back when Sky was the one infected with the Virus.

"According to the unit leader, the Avatar is, or rather _was_ , a Recruit as well. One of the scouts that had gone missing during routine patrols of the Nether Portal Borderlands," Seto continued, reading off from his copy of the reports. Sky blinked.

"You guys were sending people into the _BrineLands_?!" he asked in shock. "That's a dead zone! Infection rates jump up in those lands, that's why I always had to go there ahead of the Army to purify pathways leading in!"

"Remind us where you've been for the last few years?" Seto asked with a smile, leaning forward and propping his chin on his hand.

"Point is, this scout killed the unit leader by summoning a Wither Skeleton.. in the Overworld," TrueMU sighed. "Considering that Creative Mode is currently inaccessible to everyone in Minecraftia, except you, Sky, and there wasn't any indication of a command block being used, we'll have to conclude it was a power from Viral Mode, which is proof of an infection on the same level as you and Deadlox back in the wars."

Seto picked through his papers again. "Strangely, getting this report was like grinding for mob heads. We likely wouldn't have gotten any of this information if they hadn't respawned yelling and screaming in a fury over it," he went on. "So, from what we gleaned from all that yelling, the scout is a Speed Class Avatar named Dream."

Sky's hands tightened into fists, hidden under the table, his heart rate already jumping as his mind raced to think of new ways to provide protection, distraction, _anything_ that could keep his Recruits at bay until he could find the root of the disturbing shift in Sky Army's conduct.

"Name sounds familiar," Logdotzip mused, brow furrowing as he thought it over. "Like... I think Captain Sparklez mentioned him once or twice as a rising star in the Players' world."

Seto's eyes narrowed as he scanned the report. "He **is** , him and his Player. Only a few months and he's gained millions of followers.. his sphere of influence expands rapidly," he commented and members of the council shifted in their seats uncomfortably. "How is that _possible_? How did **this** slip by our notice? Sky Army's power relies on maintaining a large sphere of influence in the other world; this Avatar is gaining that same amount of power in a fraction of the time it took Sky."

"That's not good. Herobrine vessel **and** he's already gaining influence and power at a rapid rate? That's dangerous for Minecraftia!" Ssundee pointed out in concern. "We have to do something about it. Any word on locating the artifacts?"

"From what our last message from Technoblade said, he's still investigating how to safely retrieve them. I tried getting coordinates from him on where the artifacts are but no response yet," Logdotzip returned, scowling a little as he flicked open the chat screen to see nothing new sent.

"Well, we know where his last location is; we can pull back some of the forces from the eastern Nether Portals and deploy them to the west and search for Dream," Husky declared with a shrug. "Capturing him alive for Sky to Purge seems to be the best move; we just gotta figure out how to pin him down without settin' off a Viral state. Maybe whittle down his heart meter with distance attacks? Kill him enough times that he loses enough levels he won't risk fighting back?"

"Orrr," Seto began with a gleam in his eye, "actually, this could work in our favor. We could use this to gain an advantage over the Cultists that we never had before."

"Seto, no," Sky growled out warningly and the sorcerer held up his hands placatingly.

"Just hear me out! This Dream has Herobrine's complete viral code but even with the amount of influential power he's got, we haven't _seen_ Herobrine respawn and try to reactivate The Convergence," Seto explained and several members of the council nodded slowly in agreement. "Maybe Herobrine isn't fully activated or there's a certain level of influence needed to trigger the overwrite? Either way, we have a rare opportunity to disarm Herobrine and put His code to work for **us**."

"What?" Deadlox asked, eyes widening in alarm. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm saying, we should try to capture him, bring Dream in and let me analyze his files," Seto suggested. "I can check for where Herobrine's coding is embedded and we'll finally have a record of how He is assembled. Then I adjust that coding so if it ever triggers, instead of carrying out whatever orders Judas programmed, Herobrine will follow ours!" He traced out a path on the paper as if moving pieces around on a board. "We send Him to the Cultists who will follow anything He says, and if Herobrine tells them to stand down and never fight with us again, we can put an end to that conflict for good. No more wars! We can finally have peace!"

"But we'll lose Dream," Sky pointed out coldly. "Isn't this a little familiar? Sacrificing one Avatar to end a war? What makes you think I'd agree to this?" A few of the council members nodded, faintly disturbed expressions on their faces. "You convinced my Third to kill himself to 'save' me; now you want to throw Dream on the altar to gain control over Herobrine and the Nether. What is **wrong** with you?!"

"I'm not suggesting this because I _like_ doing this to Avatars!" Seto shot back, standing up and slamming his hands on the table. "We have to think of the whole population of Minecraftia! The fact that if The Convergence is triggered again, we might not be able to survive separating the two worlds again!" He looked around at the other members of the team. "If it was any one of **us** that had Herobrine's code, I'd _still_ suggest this plan. One for the many; I'm sure if Dream knew that sacrificing himself to save this world his friends live in would work, he'd do it gladly. Wouldn't any of us do the same? Knowing that it's a guarantee that Herobrine would never threaten anyone ever again?"

"Bad as it sounds, Seto **does** have a point," Einshine muttered, picking at the corner of one of his report pages. "If we could separate Dream's Core File out, keep him safe somewhere, then maybe that'd be better? We'd just have an empty body for Herobrine to use and Seto could work with that. We don't have to lose the guy that way, right?" Seto nodded, gesturing towards him.

"There, see? Even better! It's what I did with Avec's Core File; I kept the original stored and just worked my modifications on a copy that was then installed into him," the sorcerer explained. "I can do the same thing with Dream, and one of the researchers in my division has even been working on a project to create shell Avatars here that don't have a Player or soul-link attached. I can install him to one of those and he'll be fine!"

"Except you'll cut him off from his Player," Deadlox pointed out icily. Seto threw his hands up in exasperation.

"But he'll be _alive_! Isn't that what you wanted, Sky? No more deaths?" he asked the brunet.

Maybe whatever poison was flowing through Sky Army was getting to the council as well. Seto acting like this, in the open, announcing his coding plans to everyone; it wasn't like him at all.

Deadlox reached aside and tapped his arm to get his attention so he glanced aside at the russet-haired Avatar. Sky raised an eyebrow questioningly and Deadlox shot a look to his hand, then up to his eyes, then tilted his head. Sky returned it with narrowing his eyes and tilting his head the other way, opposite of how Deadlox tilted his head. Deadlox rolled his eyes and raised an eyebrow back.

"Does anyone else find it disturbing that those two can hold a conversation like that?" GoldSolace asked with a wry grin.

Sky furrowed his brow at Deadlox, squinting, and Deadlox returned the look with a smile and nod. Content with the conversation, Sky turned back to the council. "What I want is for Sky Army to go back to the way I had originally envisioned it," he announced and stood up, sweeping his hand before himself to open a command window, "but I'll settle for dealing with Dream myself, personally."

_[/tp SkythekidRS Dream]_

The council cried out in surprise as the Commander of the Sky Army blinked out of sight, teleporting away. In the chaos of members arguing and trying to figure out what happened and whether or not Seto's plan was viable or ethical, the sorcerer slipped out of the room with his notes. There was still work to be done, after all.

\---

Sapphira sighed, looking over the notes Seto passed down to her. Her agents failed to bring in the Herobrine Vessel, but they did promise to go back out to try again once they regained levels at the mob grinder. At least they brought back information for her; too bad the Sky Army High Council also got access to it. On the plus side, Seto provided her with more information and even his plans for altering the vessel's coding to be devoted to the Army and grant them control over the Nether and the Cultists.

"It's an okay plan, _I_ _guess_ ," she remarked to her colleagues with a pout, "especially when he mentioned my Artificial Avatar project. But I still think it's better to just create a perfect Vaccine and end the Virus for good. It'd be nice if we could extract that perfect immunity code from Sky himself, but he's too heavily guarded, so using Dream to build our own version is the best we can do."

"What about that idea of transferring a copy of an Avatar's Core File into the shell?" the teddy-bear onesie Avatar asked, "That way you can keep a control copy in case we make some error in building the vaccine. Didn't Seto say he had some Avatar's Core File stashed away?"

Sapphira blinked and her wings fluttered. "Oh? Oh! That thing! Yes, I remember seeing it when he was making modifications on that Avatar, back before Seto ordered him to die and helped me realize how expendable we all are in a viral war." She flapped a hand dismissively. "I already checked for it. The file's gone. Seto thinks it's still there but only because he hasn't had a reason to check on it in ages." She sat up and wove her hands together, resting her chin on them and thinking. "Still, once we get our hands on Dream, making a copy of his Core File and implanting it into the Artificial Avatar would be useful. I can finally test my hypothesis that transplanting a Core File doesn't negate an Avatar's sentience and they can stay sane even without a soul-link." Sapphira gave a happy little squeal, her cheeks pink as she giggled.

"I'm going to have so much _fun_ with you, Dream~!" she exclaimed as the other Avatar clapped their hands for her. "I can't wait to get my hands in your code and make such wonderful science~!"

\---

_[Teleported SkythekidRS to Dream.]_

"What," Dream growled under his breath. He stayed in his huddle, wrapped in his cloak and hood pulled down to cover his hair. The room he was in was decently furnished, if abandoned, and the distant sound of Illagers moving about the expansive dungeon kept him fairly on edge. It didn't look like the sort of dungeons Dream was used to, with walls and floors of mossy, cracked, and regular cobblestone, looking like fancier versions of vanilla dungeons; this made him think of a mansion or castle built by Builder Avatars with all their decorative tricks and trimmings. Luckily the mobs weren't in every single room, staying in a sectioned off area to stay close to their fireplaces to keep warm.

Dream had slipped into the dungeon to get out of the cold of the taiga biome and sped through the structure, sticking to shadows, hiding behind pillars and pieces of furniture, and using Shadow Brews from what few chests he could loot to cross large, open areas until he was a decent distance away from the mobs. He then ducked into the first room he found and let himself rest at last, only to be interrupted by the command message alert.

So the leader of Sky Army could use teleport commands and didn't need consent from the other party to make the jump? Made sense; Sky was the system operator since Minecraftia used his server as the anchor.

"This is kinda weird. Where the hell is this? _What_ is this? Some kinda prison? Don't remember anyone building a new prison map to play in." Sky fired off questions at random, sounding confused and annoyed at the same time.

"Hey! Shut up! You're gonna call attention to me and I don't want to end up captured again," Dream hissed, lifting his face from where he'd hidden behind his knees. The mask highlighted the Avatar dressed in gray and black armor circling around the room, overlaying a small gold crown above his head. Makes sense.

Sky stopped moving around and looked back at him, eyebrows raised over the sunglasses that hid his eyes. "Hi," he finally greeted in a quiet tone. "So, you're Dream."

Dream rolled his eyes as he stood up from the floor, pulling his hood back and tapping his mask to collapse it away into goggles that he pushed up onto his head. He narrowed his eyes distrustfully at the brunet. "And you're Sky," he returned bluntly. "If you're here to try and turn me into a weapon, I'm sure as hell gonna make it a nightmare for you."

The other Avatar lifted his hands and shook his head. "That's not what I want. I'm trying to keep everyone else from doing that to you but believe me, it's harder than I thought," Sky protested. "Something happened to my Recruits, they're going rogue on me and I can't seem to pull enough influence to get them back to following the peaceful path I asked them to follow."

A faint Illager grunt caught Dream's attention and he lifted a finger to his mouth in warning. Sky immediately fell silent, concerned expression on his face as the blonde carefully moved to the window of the little room and peeked out. A Pillager and Vindicator were looting one of the rooms lower down in the sprawling structure, carrying boxes of food and gear across a stone brick bridge to the staircase leading back to their portion of the dungeon.

"Okay, we're clear for now," Dream sighed and pulled away from the window, closing the trap doors over them that were used as shutters. "Whatever you want, I'm not interested. Go away and let me sleep so I can keep moving tomorrow."

"I know you have my amulet and Deadlox's headset," Sky pointed out flatly. Dream spun on his heel, iron axe flicking into his hand and lashing out, just in time to get blocked by a shimmering golden sword in Sky's hand. " _Goddammit_ , stop taking everything I say like it's a threat to you! I know you have them, I'm **not** taking them from you because I also know you have Herobrine's coding inside you! You **need** them to keep Him sealed!" Sky snapped, struggling to hold back the axe.

"I've heard stories about what you and your army do to hold onto power! What'd you expect from me?!" Dream shot back. "Your stupid Recruits tried to buy me from a bunch of Illagers and acted like I fucking offended them because I got shot by a stupid arrow that uploaded a bullshit virus into my body! That's not my fault! I'm just trying to find a cure so I can get my life back!"

"And what if I offered training to help you get your Viral Mode under control?" Sky asked through his teeth, pushing more weight into his sword. The iron and gold blades sparked against each other and Dream flinched, giving the brunet the opening to sweep the sword down, hook the axe, and fling it out of his hand. "I'm not here to fight you, I _promise_ ," Sky pleaded, keeping his sword down and holding one hand out to him. "I just don't want anyone else dying in my name, and you're the Herobrine Anti-Virus. You need to stay alive to keep Minecraftia safe from Him."

Dream snorted, turning away from him to fetch the fallen axe. "Yeah? Tell Minecraftia to quit trying to kill me then, bringing in all this Minecraft Dungeons bullshit to mess with my speedrunning," he retorted. He grabbed the axe and flicked it away into his hotbar, then went over to the fireplace to sit and get warmed, pulling his cloak around himself again. "If you're not here to capture me or kill me, at least tell me you have some food on you. I'm low on hunger and I lost three hearts trying to dodge those assholes outside and taking fall damage for it."

There was some movement around himself, the sound of typing into a screen, then the plopping of beds nearby. Eventually, Sky joined him at the fireplace, sitting down beside him and draping his royal blue cape longways across his shoulders in a makeshift blanket. A flick of his hand and he held out a steaming bowl of rabbit stew towards him. Dream reached out to accept, paused, then hurriedly brought down his goggles, tapping the mask back out over his face. A scan was run on the bowl and it reported back; Rabbit Stew. Only then did he accept the food with a quiet _'Thanks'_ and start eating.

"What was that? What you did with the mask," Sky asked in surprise, flicking his hand again to bring out another bowl of food for himself. Dream shrugged.

"Dunno, but it checks items for me, makes sure they're what they look like," he replied between mouthfuls of stew. "No offense, but last time someone gave me stew it turned out to be drugged and I'm not going through that hell again." Sky only nodded in understanding and the two went back to eating in silence.

\---

_[$%#v@%$$* has joined the game.]_

"Things have certainly changed a lot since I last was here. Honestly didn't expect to retain my self, but Minecraftia does work its miracles now and then." A clap of hands and a slow circle to take in the surrounding area. "The library is still in ruins. It's fine. Don't need it anymore. So what, what, _what_ did I get called back to this world for? Let's go find out. I wonder if anyone forgot me. I hope they did. It'd make gathering information so much easier."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was a bit of a struggle, mainly in how these groups would react and handle the information they would get about Dream and his incredibly fast growth in popularity and influence.
> 
> Squidlings were Avatars that were Awakened by or infected with the Squid Virus, an offshoot of the Herobrine Virus. Deadlox was used as a test subject to alter the coding and generate the Virus but was able to combine part of that code with Sky's Herobrine Vaccine to make himself into the Squid Anti-Virus. Near the end of the Viral Wars, Herobrine absorbed the Squid Virus into himself and had the Squidlings either convert to his cause of their own free will or killed them to remove potential opposition to his forces. Kothra converted willingly and protected several other Squidlings as he led them to also convert for their safety; these agents later became the basis for his spy network and elected him as their leader.
> 
> Original prompt was 'tissues'.


	19. 8. Talent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Herobrine may be contained and restrained by the artifacts, but He can still try to poison Dream's mind and manipulate him into lowering his mental defenses. What He's after is control of Dream's natural talents, and Sky needs to train him to be able to use them first to defend against the Virus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: Panic attack, brief vomiting scene after dream sequence, brief derealization.

8\. Talent

Pillars of obsidian rose overhead, looming far out of render distance. The staticky black of the void consumed what light would have radiated from the crystals on their peaks, leaving only a moody dimness on the island of end stone. Dream walked across the field in a daze, confused by the Endermen turning in place to nod at him before turning back to stare into nothing.

There were no sounds of flapping wings or dragon roars, even the Endermen were silent, and the only sound he could hear was a faint buzz that seemed more in his head than anything else, and the steps of his boots across the milk white stone. In the center of the ring of pillars was the bedrock fountain where the dragon would hover and the final portal would open upon her defeat. But there was no dragon, no portal, and no egg; instead, standing on top of the bedrock pillar, was a figure in filthy default clothes, brown hair tousled by a dry wind that passed over the island, and glowing white eyes that seemed focused on Dream as he approached.

He stopped at the base of the fountain, looking up at the dread figure. He wanted to run, flee the island and never look back, but despite being aware of how terrified he should be, he felt only numb in Herobrine's presence.

 _"It doesn't matter how fast or how far you run,"_ Herobrine spoke softly, and Dream shivered, flinching a little at the sound, _"you can't escape me. I only have to wait for you to realize the truth."_

"And what truth would that be?" Dream asked warily. He backed away a few steps as Herobrine jumped down from the pillar to stand before him. The brunet tilted His head at him, expression neutral as before.

 _"That you belong to me, now, Dream,"_ the Virus replied simply. _"Your body, your voice, your skills, and your Player; all of that belongs to me now. And I'll carry out our greatest desire."_

"..The Convergence?" Dream whispered in horror, "You're going to use me to bring that about? I don't even know what it was in the first place!" He shook his head. "No, I'm **not** letting that happen. I've got the artifacts, and you can't do anything to me as long as I have them!"

Herobrine dipped His head in a nod, then looked out at the rest of the End dimension. Dream watched Him cautiously, one hand pressed to the gleaming clasp as his mask kept tracking on the other Avatar. They stood together in strained silence before Herobrine spoke again. _"You'll throw them away eventually,"_ He said in a tone that felt like His words were more fact than prediction.

"What makes you think I'd do something so stupid?" Dream asked derisively. Herobrine looked back at him, then leaned forward to whisper into his ear as the blonde went rigid.

 _"Because if you don't, you won't be able to save your friends from my followers, and their unmaking will be **your** fault,"_ He crooned using Dream's own voice and chuckled before drawing away from him. Dream remained frozen in place, eyes wide and breath speeding up, unable to look away as Herobrine gestured towards the figures of Sapnap, George, Bad, and Technoblade shuffling around slowly. Their expressions were frozen in fear, eyes wide and blank and glowing white, diamond pickaxes held loosely in their hands and dragging across the ground beside them. And beyond them were still more Avatars in converted states, WilburSoot, TommyInnit, Tubbo_, Antfrost, Quackity, friends and allies lost in their minds, trapped in their own bodies, with the last expressions on their faces ones of horror and pain.

Dream screamed, heart shattering at the sight.

\---

"Hey! **Hey!** Wake up! It's a nightmare! You're **okay**!" Sky's voice broke through his own shrieking and Dream struggled against his blanket and bed, flinging the cover off and slapping away hands grabbing at him. Once freed, he immediately turned and let himself be sick, shuddering as he tried forcing the images of the waning nightmare out of his head. "Ew, messy, not cleaning that up, nope, nope."

Some minutes passed in a fog and, contrary to his complaints, Sky did clean up the mess using the blanket Dream had tossed away, burning it and the stripped-down bed with a flint and steel afterwards, while the blonde made use of a makeshift shower the brunet had constructed in the adjacent room using stone bricks, a flowing water source, and a cauldron of lava to heat the water. Dream kept his head pressed to the wall, trying his best to calm his breathing and heart, only to feel himself get worked up all over again at the distant buzz that rose and fell in his 'hearing'.

That was going to be _another_ thing to add to his trauma list, right below iron doors and above piglins with pearls.

By the time he felt settled enough in his own skin to come out from the room, dressed and damp and at risk of a cold, Dream had buried the bulk of the nightmare and its message within the same corner of his mind as the rest of his nightmares. Sky was already sitting at a table pulled near the fireplace, two servings of breakfast set out. In silence, Dream took a seat and let the mask scan the food before offering his thanks in a small voice and eating. Sky nodded and tucked into his own breakfast, making no mentions of how little the blonde actually ate.

After breakfast, the brunet poked at him with a stick as they stood near the fireplace to keep warm. "Hey, hey, are you okay? That must have been a hell of a nightmare," Sky commented worriedly. "What happened? Is it okay for me to ask that?"

He didn't want to think about it, didn't want to dwell on Herobrine's words, but they slipped free and haunted him, spinning around his head and all he could see was Sapnap and George looking up at him as though begging him to set them free the only way Infected could be freed and he couldn't, he _couldn't_ -!

A sob escaped him as he gripped his head, wishing he could rip the visions out of his brain. "Please, _please_ , why won't it just **stop**?" Dream begged of his own mind, jumping slightly as Sky carefully covered his hands and then gently pulled them away from his head.

"Tell me five things you can see around you," Sky ordered softly. Dream stared at him in confusion, then slowly realized how hazy the world seemed. It took him a moment to focus, the mask's tracking moving erratically before vanishing.

"You," Dream began, taking in the sight of the Butter King kneeling before him before looking past him and around slowly, carefully. "The fireplace, the table, bookshelves, a chest."

"Good, good. Take a deep breath," Sky instructed, inhaling deeply to guide Dream along, then breathing out. "Four things you hear."

The silence of the End, the dead, dead wind, the moaning of- no, **no** , that's not **here**. Dream shut his eyes and listened. "Fire crackling." It popped and snapped in the fireplace. "Creaking boards." The old wood planks in the dungeon's rooms were partially rotted from age and moisture. Sky hummed a soft melody, gentle and familiar. "You singing. Me talking."

 _Herobrine_ talked with his voice. Was it him talking now? Or Herobrine talking _through_ him? His eyes went wide, breath quickening, and Sky's voice rose a little louder.

 _"Well, baby, I've been here before. I've seen this room and I've walked this floor,"_ the brunet's song called to him, made the clasp shimmer brighter and his mind clear a bit more. Herobrine can't sing that, right? He _couldn't_ , it's the song to immunize against Him. Dream moved his mouth to match the lyrics, words coming haltingly but following along.

 _"I u-used to live alone before I knew you,"_ he managed to get out and shivered at the soothing wave of light washing over him from the clasp. _"And I've seen your flag on the marble arch..."_

 _"...and love is not a victory march. It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah,"_ the two of them finished the line together and let the song trail off there.

" **Your** voice. Not His," Sky told him firmly and Dream nodded slowly. "Three things you can touch."

The gloves pressed against his own hands, trapping his fingers and strands of dirty blonde hair between them, were soft and worn down despite being refreshed by code each morning. "Your gloves. My hair." Dream counted off and took a shaky breath. "My tears."

"Deep breath," Sky encouraged, leading him along in the breathing exercise again. "You're doing good, very good. Two things you can smell."

Dream's nose twitched. The fireplace gave off the scent of burning coal and wood, and it did decently at neutralizing the acrid smell of his earlier sick. "Burning wood." He sniffed again. "Dusty air."

"One thing you tasted."

Breakfast. He had breakfast. He couldn't have had it in the End, and he was awake to eat it, he could still taste it in his mouth. "Potatoes, from breakfast," Dream told Sky and laughed shakily, almost dizzy with relief. He was himself, he was still Dream. "I'm me. _I'm **me**._" Sky smiled and nodded.

"Yeah. You're Dream, you're _here_ , and I promise I'm gonna help you through this," the Butter King replied.

"It didn't burn me this time," Dream realized aloud, blinking in surprise. The brunet only gave him a puzzled look. "The song you, **we** , were singing. It burned me last time, but not now."

"Oh, because you hadn't been registered at the time, so it burned a bit of your soul to link the song to your voice," Sky answered, helping him stand and then holding still to let Dream use him for support. "Happened with me my first time, but the rest of the Sky Songs should work fine for you from now on without any problems." He paused, then winced a little. "Well, there's still side effects from a few but that's just the nature of them. The soul burning is a staple side effect of the restoration song, _Let's Have Some Fun In Minecraft_." Dream gave him an askance look and Sky shrugged one shoulder. "It restores large sections of infected land back to a purified state but it takes up some amount of my life and Adam's to do it. Thanks to the deal I made with Minecraftia, it won't backlash against your Player if you were to sing it, so they'll be fine."

"Sky Songs?" Dream asked incredulously, "Seriously? All your Anti-Virus powers and stuff are triggered by singing? What? Why?!" He waved a hand around in exasperation. "If Herobrine wanted a singer, He could have targeted a professional one! Why you?! Why _me_?!"

"Because our voices draw attention and hold it," Sky explained seriously and gestured to the chairs at the table. Once both of them were seated, he went on. "Herobrine was designed to take advantage of the qualities my Player and I have to hold a large following and their attention. Primarily it was our voice; fans would listen to us, hear our voice, and drop their mental guard. They trusted us and loved us, so they don't defend against us in their minds," the brunet explained. "Herobrine wanted to use that by jumping to my Player through me and using his voice to send subliminal messages through his singing talent." He waved a hand at Dream. "You've got a similar quality; people hear your voice, your Player's voice, and they focus on it, they open to it, especially when your Player sings."

"He's not very good at it, though," Dream countered flatly, "so I'm not good at it either." Sky shook his head.

"You've got talent, you just need training. Herobrine has training from when He had control of my voice and I'm going to _skip over thinking about that real quick or you're gonna have to talk me out of a panic attack too_ ," Sky's words sped up, his eyes widening. "So He's already one step ahead there and that's why I need to train you yourself to sing so you can use the songs against Him and the Cultists."

"So you **are** weaponizing me," Dream kept his flat tone, narrowing his eyes at Sky, who only thumped his head against the table.

"No, I'm **not**! I'm passing on my songs to you so you can keep yourself and your friends safe!" he yelled through the wood and raised his head to squint back at Dream. "You **do** have friends, right?"

Dream opened his mouth to reply that of course he did, but the flicker of imagery in his mind, the sight of horrified faces and empty eyes made his voice catch as Sky reached out to grab his hand and ground him again.

"You're _here_ , not there. Herobrine did it to me, too; I know He's trying to break you, so you **can't** let Him get to you," the brunet told him firmly. " _Please_ , trust me. I just want to help you survive this." Something cracked, the sound so close by and Sky's eyes flicked up briefly, widening slightly. "Oh god, no _no **no**_ , Dream, hold it together. You're **here** , you're **you** , your friends are _safe_ , no one knows who they are or where they are," he pleaded, reaching across the table hurriedly and cupping Dream's face in his hands. " **Don't** let Him get to you!"

"The Cultists know, they've already seen me with them, they know, _they know_!" Dream gasped out, imagination jumping to all the ways they could be tormented into conversion. It was a mistake to have left them behind! He shouldn't have left them, he shouldn't have run, they were safer together-!

No, they were at more risk with him there, broken code and broken bodies, and _George almost died_ -!

"Dream! You're **here**! Come back from where you are in there! Fuck, _fuck_ , what can I **do**?" Sky demanded of himself, staring helplessly at the masked blonde that went rigid in his chair, the mask bearing a single crack on the left side, running from hairline to 'eye'. He glanced down at the shimmering smiley face clasp that matched it, then made a decision. Quickly, before he could lose his nerve, Sky dropped one hand down to grab the clasp, clutching it in his hand and concentrating.

 _"Closet full of secrets and skeletons, awakes but nothing's true. I used to own a castle, now it's boxes that I have to move,"_ Sky sang, pouring his own code through the clasp to trigger the effects of the rally, praying it would recognize him even while registered to another Avatar. _"Right here in the darkness, there's nothing left for me to do. It's easier to run away but today.. today we got to cast the shadows out from sight!"_

The clasp flickered, the ghostly image of his amulet glitching over it, and Dream's breath hitched, the lime green of his cloak shimmering, streaks of royal blue bleeding into places onto it.

 _"A final stand, a shouting cry! All the wrongs now turned to right, so fight the past! Take back the night!"_ Sky's voice raised in volume, hopeful that the rally would break the hold Herobrine had on the blonde's mind. _"And call upon the torch tonight to bring out all the ghosts to light, because at last we have to go; it's time to take back the night!"_

A pulse seemed to burst from the clasp/amulet, the royal blue swallowed the green of the cloak for only a moment before breaking away to return to the lime color it was before, and Dream gasped loudly, one hand scrabbling up to grab the clasp and squeezing Sky's hand over it instead. He coughed between shaky, deep inhales, as if he'd been suffocating seconds earlier and only now could get air.

"Wh-what.. _what the fuck?_ " he managed to ask hoarsely. His head ached, pounding from within and painful to the point of pissing him off. His vision was blurry but clearing up quickly, giving him a chance to see a thin distortion in a corner of his field of view. He reached a free hand up to his mask, fingertips running along the new crack that traced the length of the visual distortion. "Damn it. That's so scuffed. What.. what _happened_ to me?"

"Are you okay for sure, Dream?" Sky asked him sternly and carefully released the clasp.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm good. What the fuck," Dream muttered, pulling his hand away so Sky could free himself. "Feels like something stuffed my head in a wool block and then beat the shit out of my brain from inside my skull."

"That would be Herobrine trying to break you down by manipulating your own fears against you," Sky replied with a huff, running one hand through his hair tiredly. "He's done it to me before, so I had to learn to cope and deal with it mostly on my own because stupid me kept pushing my friends away." He flicked his hand to a shimmering book that he placed down on the table and pushed across to Dream. "Here. It's pretty much all my experiences as the Herobrine Anti-Virus and what to expect from that asshole Virus. Hoping it helps you once I go back to Sky Capital."

Dream took the book in hand, flipping through the pages before putting it away in his inventory. "But you're still training me, right?" he asked.

"I **just** pulled you out of a nightmare, a panic attack, and an attempted mental manipulation from Herobrine and it's not even lunchtime yet," Sky growled and pointed at a freshly made bed. "Go rest for an hour or two and then it's singing lessons. I can't guarantee I'll be able to rush to you and sing like I did here, so you **need** to get trained to use the songs on your own. Once you have some control over your voice, I'll teach you about Viral Modes."

"Right," Dream sighed, carefully getting up from his chair and making sure his legs didn't buckle under him. He made his way over to the bed and flopped into place, rolling onto his back and staring up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "Hey, Sky?" he called out, glancing over at the brunet. Sky had pushed his glasses to the top of his head, rubbing at his eyes as though to ward off a headache of his own.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you.. for helping me," Dream told him quietly and smiled a little. "For what it's worth, I **do** trust you." The brunet looked up at him in surprise, then returned the smile with a grin of his own. "And yeah, I've got friends, good ones. And I'd do anything to keep them safe," Dream admitted, blinking when Sky's grin faded and the brunet shook his head, a pained expression on his face.

"Don't. Don't say things like that," he said softly. "Trust in your friends to be able to stand up and stand with you. But don't use your lives as bargaining tools. It's never worth it."

\---

Lunch was chicken broth, thin and light but easier on Dream's stomach. He whined in protest, especially when Sky had ham and cheese sandwiches, but the brunet gave him a strangely parental scowl so he kept his complaints to himself and sipped at the broth. Afterwards, Dream packed up whatever items he could fit into his backpack and gave Sky a puzzled look when the brunet didn't bother collecting anything.

"I've got access to Creative Mode," Sky explained with a shrug.

They left the room and proceeded to navigate the dungeon, Dream taking the lead as Sky got more confused by the maze of rooms. Avoiding the Illagers took a bit longer; Sky's speed was lower compared to Dream's own and the brunet didn't have quite the same confidence in long jumps so he tended to fly and Dream was stuck throwing things up at him to remind him to stay out of sight.

Things went a bit off when they reached the final room, a large and open area that had the exit and entrance suddenly seal themselves off with pistons and blocks. Dream ducked behind a pillar, staring in horror at a huge mob that pulled itself out of the floor. The creature was massive, with skin like stone brick blocks and mossy cobblestone covered in snow and spruce leaves.

"What the hell is _**this**_?!" Sky shrieked, waving his arms wildly at the mob.

"Get out of sight, you idiot!" Dream yelled back, looking around desperately in search of a path that could lead to an exit. Maybe he could parkour close to the ceiling and dig enough blocks to tower out of the hillside?

"No! What the **fuck** is this **bullshit**?! This isn't vanilla Minecraft!" Sky yelled, stamping a foot in place.

"I **told** you Minecraftia was trying to kill me! That thing's probably from Dungeons! Or some new creation based on it!" Dream shouted, darting around the room from pillar to pillar as his eyes followed the layout of the blocks, searching out a path to use.

"That's stupid, I'll fix this," Sky scoffed and marched towards the giant mob. "Hey! Minecraftia! Make this thing passive! Dream is the Herobrine Anti-Virus now, so-!" The creature shifted and swung one large arm out, then spun in place, swinging its limb to collide its 'fist' with the brunet. Sky was flung across the room, hitting the floor several times before sliding to a stop, limp and unmoving.

"Sky!" Dream called out, horrified by the blow. That much damage while he was in Creative?! How was he going to get out of this one? "Oh. My. Gosh. I don't know what to do," he breathed helplessly, crouched behind a pillar as the mob slowly moved around the room. He pressed his forehead to the cold stone, "I **don't** know what to _doooo_!" What items did he have? His iron axe, some stone tools, wood planks, beds, food, the Manhunt Compass, Sky's book, his Dungeons gear, the refillable potion, gold and iron ingots, a lantern, redstone dust, arrows, feathers, wool, Ender pearls, flint and steel, sand, a Golden Apple from a desert temple, cauldron, bucket of water, bucket of lava; what could he do with these? Was this _all_ he had?

No.

He had something else....

Dream took a deep breath to steady himself, one hand going up to his mask and slipping it off his head. He gripped it in both hands, looking down at his signature smiley face with the single crack now marring the white material. Last time that Viral state happened, his mask had been removed by that asshat Recruit so maybe it needed to be off for it to happen again? He nodded to himself. Right, now to get this thing secured so he didn't lose it after the state was over. He flicked to the Ender pearl and peeked around the pillar. Sky hadn't moved at all from where he lay on the floor and Dream shot the mob ignoring him a narrow-eyed glare. He tossed the pearl at the Butter King, shook off the minor damage from the teleport, and quickly wrapped the strap of the mask around Sky's wrist before dragging him behind a pile of rubble formed of stone bricks, spruce planks and crates. He flicked to the potion, tapped its icon, and uncorked it, carefully feeding it to the unconscious Avatar to help him heal some of the damage. He tapped the icon again and the timer kicked on, counting down the seconds until it refilled, and Dream put the bottle away.

With the iron axe in hand, Dream stepped out from behind his cover to face the giant mob. "Hey! Whoever it was Sky was talking to! Minecraftia itself or whatever the fuck you are!" he yelled out. "What the **hell** is **wrong** with you?! Sky's the Sysop! The big shot of the server you use as this world's anchor! And you just let this thing you brought in to come after **me** do that to _him_?! No! Fuck that! Fuck that and fuck **you** , you hypocritical shit! I'm kicking this thing's ass and getting Sky out of here cuz he **didn't** deserve that bullshit!"

Green eyes flickered and blazed magenta, the buzzing rose from being background white noise in his head, and Dream twisted his hand and wrenched upward, a crowd of Wither Skeletons bursting up out of the floor, knocking blocks aside. They rattled and swarmed over the giant mob, stabbing away at the stony skin. The shadows of the pillars and corners seemed to writhe, gleaming magenta eyes appearing from within. Dream watched the movements of the skeletons, then darted in, slashing at the giant mob with the axe at the weak points pried open by the skeletons.

The giant mob managed to lift one arm and swung it back before spinning to slam it into him as well. Dream lifted his arm with the bracer, ready to use it as a makeshift shield, only to feel something grab him around the waist and make the familiar sound of an Enderman teleport, pulling him out of danger. Startled, he looked back over his shoulder, surprised to see an Enderman holding on to him. It set him down then blipped away, joining several other Enderman now crawling over the giant mob and pulling blocks off to dismantle it. He hummed to himself then rushed in, slashing into an opened gash the skeletons and Endermen pried open for him.

A crack sounded and the axe blade split, startling Dream just long enough for the mob to manage another swing of its arm and actually connect, flinging him across the room. He crashed onto the floor, then pushed himself up, growling angrily. The Endermen hissed and swarmed in a thicker crowd over the giant mob. Dream lashed the broken iron axe before himself, magenta light rippling over it and converting it into a fresh diamond axe.

"Ugh, that hurt like.. a lot," Sky groaned and pulled himself up, clinging to the pillar and squinting at the room. His eyes widened at the sight of Wither Skeletons and Endermen swarming over the giant mob in a writhing black and magenta mass, a bit of lime green darting over and through the mass. "No, _no no no_! Dream! You're not trained on controlling Viral Mode yet!" he yelled in alarm, reaching out and blinking at the mask strapped to his arm. "And you're not supposed to take off an artifact to use Viral Mode! You **need** to keep this on!"

The giant mob stumbled and roared under the weight of the mass of mobs, stretching out both arms and spinning in place to fling them all off. Dream twisted in midair, reorienting himself to plant feet against the pillar he'd been aimed at and launching off to get back at the giant mob, yelling angrily at the creature. It reached out to grab him out of the air and squeezed, the blonde screaming in pain.

"Stop! Stop it! Don't kill the guy!" Sky shrieked, eyes shining gold as he darted forward, golden light spreading from his body to form a pair of tentacles. They reached up to the stone brick fist and dug in, struggling to pry it open to free Dream. Just enough space was made that the blonde slipped out and immediately dove back into the mass of black. " _Dream!_ Stop! You're going to go Feral if you keep this up!" Sky yelled, twisting the tentacles around to slam the fist down into the ground, holding it in place while the Endermen continued pulling blocks off, whittling away at the size of the mob and weakening it.

Lime green zipped over the shrinking mass, a blur of bright color that rang with the sound of diamond impacting stone over and over. The giant mob moved slower, thrashed more sluggishly, and Sky twisted the tentacles again, this time to rip the immobilized limb right off of the creature and fling it away. "Dream, fucking **stop** before you do something stupid, you lil shit!" the brunet yelled, spawning two more shimmering tentacles of light that dove into the mass and grabbed onto the blur of green. He pulled the blonde out of the swarm of mobs and held him suspended in the air. "Fucking _quit it_!"

Dream only laughed at him, magenta eyes gleaming almost wildly down at him. "Knew I couldn't fucking trust Sky Army!" he shot back and swept his arms open. Endermen blipped into the air overhead, carrying blocks of lit TNT that they released before teleporting away. Sky swung his two freed tentacles upward, desperately knocking the blocks away and taking to the air to escape the explosions and the swarm of angry mobs now targeting him. He winced and coughed, red spattering onto his glove from yet unhealed internal injuries. Downside of being in Creative Mode when injured, no healing was possible from items or native regeneration.

"I'm **not** against you! I need you to **calm** the fuck **down**!" Sky snapped, the tentacles gripping Dream slamming up against the ceiling of the dungeon, burying him into the blocks by a few layers. There was a hissing sound and suddenly the ceiling and room lit up even brighter as a cascade of lava came down towards him. "What the fuck?!" Sky dragged the golden tentacles to the side, swerving to avoid the lava and pull Dream from the ceiling. Down below, the Wither Skeletons and Endermen scattered to avoid the cascade, several of the skeletons scaling the pillars and standing on them, bows in hand to fire arrows at the brunet. "Stop! _Stop, stop, stop!_ "

"You'll have to let me go at some point~!" Dream laughed viciously, gripping the light wrapped around his body. "If you don't, _they'll_ kill you~! And if you do, **I'll** kill you~!"

"Take a third fucking option," Sky growled, unwrapping the mask from his arm. He yanked the blonde closer, using all four tentacles to wrap around his wrists and ankles and spread his limbs out. Dream struggled in place, pulling at each limb and testing the limits of the Viral Rage, eyes darting over each tentacle in search of a weakness or something to exploit. "Keep your fucking mask **on**!" the brunet snapped, slipping the band back into place and securing the mask over Dream's face. "Stupid, bratty, idiotic-!" Sky coughed again into one hand, a wave of dizziness passing over him at still more blood loss.

That seemed to catch Dream's attention, as the blonde finally went still, the mobs dropping their attacks immediately to stare up at them. "Sky?" Dream asked in an uncertain tone, "What? What did I-?"

Wither Skeletons and Endermen vanished in puffs of pixels and smoke, falling apart as the magenta light faded from their eyes and sockets. With the ground cleared, Sky landed and stumbled, the golden light fading as he collapsed by a pillar, struggling to breathe. Dream landed nearby, wobbling on his feet before hurrying over and dropping to his knees beside the brunet.

"What did I do? _What did I do?_ Oh my god, I'm sorry, _I'm sorry_!" he murmured in a panicked tone, flicking through his hotbar to the potion again. "I shouldn't have tried using that stupid Viral thing before you could teach me about it, god, such a stupid, _stupid_ idea!"

"Smart idea, stupid execution," Sky countered breathlessly, typing into his command screen and then cringing in pain. "Potion, _potion_! Can't breathe!" Dream uncorked the bottle again and helped him drink, waiting for the timer to count down again as the brunet sighed shakily and eased into a more comfortable sitting position. "Can't heal in Creative, had to deal with your tomfuckery with punctured lungs and broken ribs, not fun. Don't do that again." Dream winced, a guilty expression on his face, and Sky waved a hand weakly at him. "No, no, sorry. Wasn't meant to guilt-trip you, just letting you know; can't heal in Creative so save your pots for after a switch to Survival." He coughed again, turning his head to spit out another mouthful of red as his lungs healed and cleared themselves. "How are you? Take any damage?"

"Not as bad as you," Dream muttered, watching the timer on the bottle. "I'm wearing Dungeons armor, which gives me a heart gauge and Dungeons damage affects that so I can take more hits. You only have Vanilla armor, so you got destroyed pretty badly there." The timer expired and Sky blinked at the empty bottle refilling with fresh potion. Dream tapped at an icon on the screen for it then passed it back to him to drink again. "I have to keep toggling it between Dungeons and Vanilla so it can refill and heal your Vanilla heart meter," he explained quietly and dropped his head back to thump against the pillar. "Why am I so **bad** at this?" he groaned.

"Told you already," Sky replied, sipping at the potion and breathing a sigh of relief as the rest of his health was restored and injuries healed, "you've got talent, but you need training."

Nearby, the giant mob collapsed in on itself and exploded in a massive cloud of pixels and smoke, leaving behind a small pile of emeralds and an ornate bow. The two Avatars blinked at it, then looked at each other.

"Fight you for the loot."

"I just finished healing, no. You can go fuck yourself. I'm taking it as consolation. You tried to bathe me in lava."

" **You** shoved me in the ceiling first! It's called tactics!"

"Throwing yourself at the same mob over and over again is tactics? Excuse me, which one of us leads an army?"

"Obviously not you if you can't get a fucking grip on a bunch of Recruits that have a raging capture boner for my ass."

"Wouldn't be a problem for you if you could actually outrun them, Mr. I'm A Speedrunner Lookit Me Go!"

"You had to use Creative Mode to keep up with me, Old Man, you don't have room to talk."

The banter went on long after they collected the loot and left the dungeon in favor of finding a safer place to start training together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song Sky uses to pull Dream out of Herobrine's manipulations is [Take Back the Night](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvTuQftTt9I), which is used as a rallying call for Recruits to prepare for combat, rejuvenates fighting spirit, bestows a copy of Sky's personal cape onto them (which has better defense), and signals allies to join in battle.
> 
> There is a reason why Dream's cloak is resistant to the change.


	20. 35. Story

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sky reveals the history of The Convergence, the creation of the Living Avatars, and the reality of what Dream has become. In return, Dream uncovers what Herobrine might be planning to do, if He ever succeeds in gaining control over him and Clay.

35\. Story

Sky flicked through the number of messages spammed to his private chat, nonplussed expression on his face that only changed at the sound of a note in a melody going off key. "Start over! Your voice cracked!" he called out and Dream gave a frustrated shriek a few feet away.

"It's fucking **cold**! I'm not singing any more in this biome!" the blonde shot back, stomping over to join him by the campfire. Snow crunched under his boots, leaving prints in the snow that soon disappeared from the gently falling flakes filling them in. "Who's been messaging you?" Dream asked idly, flicking open his own chat screen to type into, sending out more reassurances to his friends who were still furious with him for leaving them behind once they woke up and found Techno unconscious and him gone with their compass. He wondered briefly if that had been the last time he'd ever see them and winced regretfully.

"The council, my friends, my second-in-command, all pretty much demanding I go back and explain myself or at least take you in to them," Sky muttered back and suddenly looked over at Dream with a serious expression. "On that note, stay as far away from Setosorcerer as you can. He's dressed head to toe in purple and gray robes with white gloves and can cast magic using chants. Keep away from him for your own health. He's a friend of mine, but I don't trust what he does in the name of protecting me." The blonde nodded and finished typing up his messages before closing the screen and holding out his hands to warm them. "We're a couple days away from a village at the start of the extreme hills biome and there's some plains after this one, so we should have clear ground for your Viral Mode training once we're out of here."

"If we leave now, we can probably get to the plains before nightfall," Dream suggested, glancing up at the sky and judging the time. Sky glanced up with him and hummed thoughtfully. The brunet had gotten new equipment as they traveled together, Dungeons armor that dropped from some mobs and a dark hood and cloak Dream bought at a stall in a tundra village for him to wear to keep from being recognized.

"Then let's go," Sky agreed, flicking open his inventory and taking out a pair of torches, handing one to Dream. He kicked at the campfire, his Creative Mode allowing him to destroy it completely without any items dropping off.

Clutching the torches for warmth, they headed across the field of snow and sparse trees. Every now and then, Sky would raise a hand at a mob that turned to look at them and Dream gave him a puzzled look. The brunet caught on and explained Deadlox's Viral ability to see through the eyes of various mobs, which he could recognize by the mob's eyes glowing scarlet, the color of Deadlox's eyes.

"Viral states affect our eye color, so it makes an instant indicator when we're in one," Sky went on as they walked side by side. He pointed at his own eyes. "Mine turn butter, Deadlox's turn this dark blue color, and yours turn magenta," he added. Dream squinted at him through the mask and the brunet sighed. "It'd probably make sense to explain Viral Mode from the top," Sky admitted, "but you have to not freak out at what I'm gonna say, alright?"

"Okaaay," Dream drawled out in suspicion. Sky flapped a hand at him before pressing fingers to his chin in thought.

"I tried to cover this in the book I gave you, but a face-to-face explanation would help. Okay, so you know how Herobrine tried to overwrite me with Himself but ended up with me being Awakened as a Living Avatar instead?" he asked and Dream nodded. "And you know that any Avatar that Herobrine Awakens is an Infected Cultist?" Another nod. Sky pushed his glasses up to let him see his expression more clearly. "Did you never wonder how all the other Avatars were Awakened as Living Avatars, not Infected Cultists?" he asked.

Dream opened his mouth, closed it, then thought it over. Minecraftia was the one Awakening Avatars now, but it didn't before, not during the Viral Wars. So what was it that created them to fight against Herobrine and His Cultists? He looked up in confusion, the mask mirroring his expression for Sky to see.

"It was me," Sky told him. "I Awakened the other Avatars myself." He held out a hand, curling his fingers inward before letting it drop to his side again. "An Anti-Viral Avatar has two components to them, that's important to remember. There's the Vaccine module," he tapped at the false amulet resting against his chest, "and the non-malevolent Virus." He tapped himself directly. "The two together create the Anti-Viral, the Virus gives the Vaccine the information to target and purify, and the Vaccine blocks the internal Virus from corrupting the Core File." Dream took in his words, considering them carefully.

"So when you Awakened all those Avatars in the Viral Wars," he spoke slowly and carefully, "you were infecting them with a passive Virus?" The brunet nodded.

"Yeah. We, my team and I, referred to it as the Sky Virus," Sky told him. "The strength of my version of the Virus weakened pretty fast after I first got it, so we ended up with different generations of Avatars. Two of my friends who were closest to me when I was Awakened and got hit by my Sky Virus almost immediately after became the FirstGen Avatars, as close to equal to me in power and potential. One of them is Deadlox, and being a FirstGen is how he ended up becoming the Squid Anti-Virus. He wouldn't have survived that otherwise."

"So Deadlox is an Anti-Viral Avatar, too?" Dream asked and Sky nodded. "And now I'm the third?" The brunet flinched and looked away.

"Um, no, not really. You're more like... you're the fourth," he stammered out, scratching his head. "Anyway, that passive Virus inside us is what gives us our Viral Modes and powers. They tend to take aspects of things that we're connected to most." He pointed at himself again. "My Viral Rage gives me aspects and abilities connected to squids, which sucks but eh. That's why I get those glowy tentacles in combat. It also lets me breathe indefinitely underwater, swim faster, that sort of thing. Deadlox has Viral Fury, and that lets him summon and control mobs like Creepers, spawn TNT, use an emerald pickaxe for a weapon and flash step to move fast across distances."

Dream laughed suddenly, stopping in place and making Sky stop to glare at him resignedly. "Wh-what?! _Whaaaat?_ Wait, wait," he blurted out between wheezes. "So, **you're** the Herobrine Anti-Virus, but your powers are based on **squids**. And... and Deadlox is the **Squid** Anti-Virus... but his powers... his are based on the Herobrine creepypasta?!" He crossed the index fingers of both hands, smiling up at an unimpressed Sky before he doubled over laughing, wheezes nearly making him fall over.

"I still feel like I got scammed," the brunet grumbled, rolling his eyes and checking the position of the sun overhead.

"Okay, okay, now me, now me!" Dream gasped out between laughs, pointing at himself. "Wh-what do I have?" Sky rolled his eyes, the two of them resuming their walk.

"Well, you're tricky; you spawned Wither Skeletons and Endermen and they're pretty different," he replied in a puzzled tone, waving the torch at a Stray that looked their way but made no move to attack. "You had Endermen drop TNT on me back in that dungeon, and they normally can do that, but not lit TNT. There's that lava you tried to drop on me too. Was that from a bucket?"

"I..," Dream began and trailed off, squinting as he tried to recall the fight. He didn't have the bucket in his hotbar, but when he held out his hand, thinking to pull the item to use, it just seemed to blip into his hand directly from his inventory, no screen swipe needed. "Yeah, it was, but it wasn't in my hotbar. The bucket of lava was in my main inventory, but it appeared in my hand when I remembered I had it and wanted to use it." He shook himself off. "Okay, so you have Viral Rage and your friend has Viral Fury; what's mine?"

"The way you acted, it's a Viral Wrath," Sky drawled out drily. "You thought I betrayed you or some shit and tried to kick my ass and nearly blew up that whole dungeon room with the both of us in it, laughing like a psychopath the entire time."

"I don't like hypocritical behavior," Dream shrugged and flashed a toothy smile up at the brunet. "Viral Wrath, huh? Sounds epic." The smile fell as he recalled the things that had pulled him out of the state. "Wish it let me help my friends better, kept them from getting hurt."

"That's why we're gonna train you in it, so you can keep your head on straight during the Controlled Viral Wrath," Sky told him, tapping him on the head. "That's the other thing, our Viral Modes come in two flavors; Controlled and Feral. So far, you've been using Controlled Viral Wrath." Dream glared halfheartedly up at him.

"What's the difference?" he huffed.

"Our eyes, first off. In a Controlled state, only our irises change color. When we're Feral, our whole eyes are taken over by it. For our friends, that could be the only warning they get to get away from us as fast as they can," Sky told him somberly. "The second is, it's **much** more powerful, more destructive, and it's so easy to kill Avatars in that state, and so easy to lose our minds. We can't tell our friends apart from our enemies during it." He looked over at Dream's paling face with a sardonic grin. "I accidentally deleted Avatars before, in a Feral state. It's very important to keep ourselves from falling that far."

"Techno said you once tore apart a giant prison and threw the blocks miles away and you only had a _fraction_ of the Herobrine Virus!" Dream blurted out in horror. Sky raised an eyebrow at him.

"Technoblade? He's probably thinking of when I tore up the Prison game map cuz of a squid attack that infected Deadlox with what became the Squid Virus," he retorted and nodded. "That was me in a Feral state, yeah. And he's sort of right; my Sky Virus was a fraction of the strength Herobrine's Virus was at the time." He gave Dream another look, searching his face as if able to see the blonde's potential. "You have nearly all of Herobrine's code inside you, suppressed by the artifacts, but still buried in your files and probably boosting the passive Virus."

Dream huffed, facing forward as they crossed the border from the snowy tundra to the warmer plains with its green grass and open fields. "So if I went Feral, I'd probably end up being as destructive as Herobrine Himself, huh?" he asked quietly. He pulled his hood back to enjoy the warm breeze, Sky doing the same beside him. "Do you remember.. back in the dungeon.. when I had that nightmare?" Dream went on, speaking carefully. Sky hummed and nodded. "I dreamed I met with Herobrine, in the End dimension," the blonde told him and took a deep breath, ignoring the shakiness of it. "And He said.. I would realize the truth.. one day.. that I.. I _belong_ to Him."

Just remembering the words, the way they'd been spoken as if they were fact and Dream railing against them would be ultimately futile, made him shiver again.

"You **don't**. He's talking out His ass; you are your own Avatar, same as I am mine," Sky growled with a shake of his head. "Manipulative bastard. Learn from my mistakes, don't fall for the same shit I did."

"He said He'd have control of me! And of my Player!" Dream raised his voice. It seemed like it was just so inevitable; what hope did he have to fight something so terrible while it was inside his own body?! "And then He was going to use me, use **him** , to bring about The Convergence! I don't even know what that **is**!" What was He going to make them do?! Who was he going to hurt with that?!

Sky stepped into his path, reaching out to grab him by the shoulders and keep him still. "He's not going to **do** any of that, because you're **stronger** than He is and you have friends to help you," the brunet told him firmly. "And The Convergence isn't gonna happen, not while you've got your friends and not while you've got me, and we're gonna help find a way to get Him out of you."

"And I can have my life back?" Dream demanded, "No Viral powers, no Anti-Virus whatever, no singing to keep things going and having the whole of Minecraftia depend on one little speedrunner?" Sky just gave him a helpless look, shaking his head.

"I'm sorry, but that part _can't_ be rolled back. You're registered as Anti-Viral; that means the Viral code Minecraftia used on you, my code, the Sky Virus.. that's not what you have anymore," the elder Avatar told him softly. "When Herobrine hooked onto it, boosted it to hide from the aura and then got suppressed by the artifacts, it changed. It's still passive, but it's not a Sky Virus." He sighed when Dream put his hands over his ears, shaking his head in denial. "You're carrying a new strain, the Dream Virus. My role, you're inheriting that, and I can't take it away, as much as I want to because you didn't deserve this, and in a way, it's **my** fault. But I can help you cope and manage, teach you what you need to get things under control, and then I have to go back to Sky Army and bring **them** under control so they stop threatening you."

"I just wanted to have fun here, to play with my friends and everyone," the blonde protested weakly, sagging in place tiredly. Sky gave him a crooked grin, placing a hand on his head and ruffling his hair.

"You still can. Just gotta be more careful now; you've become a lot more precious to a lot more people, whether they know it or not," he replied and jerked a thumb over his shoulder. "C'mon, there's a spot nearby I saw that's good for testing Viral Mode."

\---

A few hours later found both Avatars sitting across from each other in a now ruined meadow, Sky pouting with his four golden tentacles moving in slow circles around himself and Dream trying to ignore the Wither Skeleton patting his back in attempted comfort, an Enderman holding out a flower to him in its hands.

"Well?" the blonde asked flatly.

"Still can't figure out what you're pulling inspo from, but it's fuckin' scary shit," Sky grumbled and one of the tentacles lifted to flap at him in place of his hand. "And you still have that diamond axe from earlier. I remember you only had an iron one, so where'd **that** one come from?"

Dream lifted the axe in his hand, examining it with glowing magenta eyes, the mask collapsed away and resting as goggles on his head. "I think I coded it that way?" he replied unsurely. The shift between iron to diamond was still fuzzy in his memory. "I saw the iron axe crack, like it was one more hit away from breaking completely.. and I think I saw-" _Code and script rippling over the surface, like the code that flickered over George's charm, and he could see where the tag was for the axe's material and durability, adjusted them in his mind and the light rippled and applied the changes, made them **real**_ , "-a way to just.. change it."

Sky blinked at him in surprise and then narrowed golden eyes thoughtfully. "Huh. What skills does your Player have that you inherited from him?" he asked.

The blonde tensed slightly and the Enderman hissed defensively in response, making Sky raise both hands placatingly. "He's a speedrunner, so that passed to me. He's good at Minecraft parkour, he worked as a coder for a friend's server for plugins and stuff," Dream replied cautiously. "My mask lets me see code directly on things, but I can't affect it. Not until I'm like this." He gestured at his eyes.

The Wither Skeleton wandered off, chasing a freshly spawned cow with its sword. The Enderman had calmed and continued to patiently offer the flower to Dream.

"Your summons are frikkin' weird, man," Sky pointed out absently, watching the skeleton cut down the cow and scurry back to Dream with the raw beef to offer.

"I can understand the Endermen, cuz I need to get pearls from them for speedrunning, but if that's what's tied to my Viral state, then shouldn't I get Blazes instead of Wither Skeletons?" Dream wondered aloud, accepting the beef from the skeleton and bringing his goggles down over his eyes. A tap brought the mask back out, the lone crack still disturbing the once smooth surface, and he studied the beef for a moment. A ripple of magenta light passed over the item and it became a cooked steak. Dream ate slowly, thinking it over.

"It's tied to _something_ , but those are two entirely separate dimensions of representation there, the Nether and the End," Sky agreed, "Why are you connected to both of those equally?" Dream shrugged with a grin.

"Speedruns. Gotta run through the Nether quick to get blaze rods and pearls, then be just as quick to kill the Ender Dragon. It's also the goal of the Minecraft Manhunt videos, for me to clear the End while my friends try to stop me by any means necessary," he replied and thought back to the nightmare of the End. "Hey, what was The Convergence anyway?"

Sky looked away, gazing sadly into the distance. For a while it seemed as though he wasn't going to answer. "I'll tell you over dinner," he finally said and gave Dream a wry grin. "You're holding up much better already. You passed out on me after we left the dungeon from the energy drain, but you're maintaining the Controlled Viral Wrath here pretty well."

"Watch me pass out after dinner. It's called sleep."

\---

They had to move on from the wreckage of the meadow. The skeleton and Enderman had despawned once the Viral state ended, and Dream had swayed on his feet, looking ashen from the drain, but held himself up through sheer determination, shaking his head at Sky's silent offer of support. They walked on and if, after a short while, he ended up tilting until he was pressed shoulder to shoulder with the elder Avatar for a small break, then neither of them made mention of it.

\---

"How the hell are you still able to be fine after being all Viral and crap but I feel like absolute shit?" Dream grumbled, sitting at the campfire and digging his fingertips into his knees, glaring at the brunet cooking over the fire and trying not to let the darkness ringed around his field of view get any larger.

"Experience," Sky returned, turning a spit that slowly rotated a thick cut of meat, roasting it over the flames. "It'll take you some time but you'll build up a greater energy reserve to compensate for the drain as your body adapts to the strain. Just try to avoid using the mode on purpose, like we did for testing."

"It _suuuuucks_!" the blonde whined, pressing the heels of both hands to his forehead. "My head hurts, I keep hearing buzzing, I just want to fall asleep and not wake up for a **week**!"

"If you pass out, I'm not telling you what The Convergence was," Sky threatened jokingly.

"I'm trying not to!"

The night was passing slowly and fairly uneventful. Hostile mobs that approached wandered back away when Sky waved golden light in their direction threateningly. He waited for Dream to finish eating, prodding at him to be sure he finished the food. "You good?" he asked and waited until the blonde nodded, "Okay, so The Convergence." Sky took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "It was a world-ending event. Herobrine had taken over my body at the time and used my voice and power to pull Minecraftia into the Players' world, a place called Earth. If He had been successful in merging the worlds together, He could have used my access as the Sysop to kill everyone with a single command."

Dream stared at him, stunned, and shakily grabbed at the clasp of his cloak, squeezing it slightly. "But.. I don't **have** that access," he told the elder Avatar, shaking his head in dismayed confusion. "Why would Herobrine want _me_? He wouldn't be able to do anything if He does that world merging with **my** voice!"

"That's what bugs me when you said He was going to do The Convergence again," Sky agreed suspiciously, stroking his chin.

Did he remember it wrong? Dream closed his eyes and pulled at the memory of the nightmare, holding it distant to keep from getting caught up in remembered fear. Did Herobrine say The Convergence? What was He going to do?

_'I'll carry out our greatest desire.'_

"Uh, I might have _assumed_ He was going to do that," he finally admitted, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. Sky narrowed his eyes at him. "He said He would carry out 'our greatest desire', whatever **that** means." Dream shrugged helplessly.

"He said 'our', not 'His'?" Sky asked and the blonde nodded. "What the hell do you have in common with Herobrine?"

"Sometimes I wake up and choose violence?" Dream replied sarcastically, throwing his hands up and rolling his eyes. "Hell if I know. I speedrun, I play challenges with and against my friends, I'm known best for the Minecraft Manhunt, I score high with teams in Minecraft Championship..."

"In other words, you're competitive," Sky stated drily.

"That's an understatement," Dream laughed. "Cl-My Player gets a bit.. salty.. when he loses a challenge or competition." He looked up at the starry sky with a smile. "It's why I always try my best when he's not logged in, to train and improve my skills and help him win at whatever he wants to try and do. If he wants to be a great pvper, I'll spend hours fighting anyone strong to learn how to be better. If he wants to be a great actor for roleplay, I'll study the stories in the libraries here to learn what goes into playing a hero or a sidekick or even a villain," he said and reached up, imagining another gloved hand reaching back to him. "I just want to make him proud of me, to be the _best_ , to help him reach his dreams. That's why I'm called Dream."

Sky gave him a fond smile, nodding in understanding, before the smile faded and he looked confused. "So how in the world is Herobrine going to use that?" he wondered aloud and blinked as Dream stood suddenly, staring down at his hands in horror.

"Everything I've learned, everything I've _studied_ , all of his knowledge shared with me, and Viral Mode able to affect whole biomes with my traps, **our** traps, Minecraft Manhunt on a massive scale," he whispered. "Herobrine doesn't **need** your access to kill everyone after The Convergence, when He can use **my** skills alone to do it just as easily." He looked over at Sky fearfully. "I _can_ be the best.. if no one is alive to challenge me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Creative license in Dream's story about why he has his name, as I don't actually know why he's called that.


	21. 13. Poster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dream and Sky part ways after a final piece of advice is shared. Things take a turn for Dream when he discovers Wanted posters with a reward for his capture, a song unique to him activates, and a mysterious Avatar picks up on his trail.

13\. Poster

The extreme hills biome loomed in the distance, massive hills and mountains towering high enough to disappear from render distance and view, leaving clouds to drift by sheer cliffs of stone and dirt. Carved into one of those cliffs was a sprawling village that was the beginning of the constructed road through the biome carved out long ago, during the Viral Wars. That was to be Dream's next destination, a place to rest, resupply, and then journey onwards to find Fundy.

Sky would not be joining him for the trip. One of his recent messages had given him a faintly alarmed look that morning and he could no longer stay away from the capital. Whatever was going on with Sky Army, he needed to go back to limit the damages and do his best to have whatever units were chasing Dream be pulled back and commanded to keep away. He'd be leaving as soon as Dream moved towards the other biome, making this his last chance for any other information and help.

There was something that had bothered him for a while now...

"Hey, Sky," Dream began cautiously, fiddling with the strap of his backpack as the brunet beside him flicked through different screens that floated before him, "you said before that I was the fourth Anti-Viral, right? Who was the third?"

Sky's hand froze mid-flick, then clenched as a look of regret came over his face. "I'm sure you know that story already; why else would the first thing you demanded to know from me be if I was there to weaponize you?" he replied quietly, letting his hand fall to his side.

"I heard it from Techno, but he admitted he didn't know the full story. You do," Dream told him, stepping closer. "It was **your** call, so explain it to me."

"Like I said, when in a Feral Viral Mode, it's very easy to lose our minds, to attack friends as well as enemies, and cause irreversible damage to Avatars and the land around us," Sky began, shoulders dropping tiredly. "I wanted a failsafe, some way of controlling us or putting us down while in that state, to stop us before we went too far. I found the potential for that in an Avatar with the ability to mimic us. My Sky Virus had weakened greatly by then, so Awakening him with it would make him a ThirdGen. By comparison, Technoblade is a SecondGen, so I'm sure you know his strength."

_The 1v1 duel, the championship matches, the kingly Avatar in the pig morph mowing down other Avatars with a bored ease that had only driven Dream to want to be even better with his own skills._

"Setosorcerer had the idea that if a direct copy of my own Core File was inserted into that Avatar's, then he should Awaken on a level equal to my own. I thought, hey, perfect, then he'd be able to mimic our Viral Modes and cancel us out! So I let Seto make a copy and modify that Avatar and he became my Third," Sky went on with a resigned little shrug, keeping his eyes on his fingers as he picked at them through the gloves on his hands. "What I didn't know at the time was Seto had his own reason for wanting my Core File copied; he kept it stored inside my Third, used him as a walking backup of me and, when Herobrine took me over, used him to restore me by transferring that backup to me." He sighed and looked skyward, eyes suspiciously shiny and blinking rapidly. "Except doing it like that meant my Third's own Core File was ripped open and torn to shreds; he died to 'save' me, and his body just.. fell apart or faded away. I don't know. I couldn't find him after that. Haven't been able to trust Seto since then, and it was what made me decide that maybe.. _maybe_..Minecraftia would be better off without me here. So I left. Sent myself into exile, told Adam to go do something else, focus on other projects, just stay away from Minecraft. Ignore the game, ignore me, leave me in stasis, where I couldn't hurt anyone else. Deadlox left with me, but I don't know if he did the same as me or just stayed in the upper servers, where the game itself is played."

_Find an island in the Void in the far reaches of the End. Stay there. Stay away from all others. Don't be used to hurt anyone else._

"Is that why you want me to avoid Setosorcerer?" Dream asked, "Worried that he'll try and put another backup of you inside me?" Sky shook his head, eyes blazing gold briefly before returning to his normal lighter brown.

"Nah, he already laid out his plans for you. His idea this time is to find Herobrine's code in you and change it to follow Sky Army orders once activated, which means he's also planning to force you into becoming loyal only to us, and that loyalty stays binding after you're turned into Herobrine. Then it's a matter of setting that Herobrine version of you in place in the Nether as a puppet king for the Cultists and having you control them for us so there won't be war again," the brunet growled. "Another fucking sacrifice in my name."

"Right," Dream sighed, looking away. "Don't count on Sky Army for help. Got it." He huffed and shook himself off. "Before you go, could I get some Eyes of Ender?" he asked. Sky shot him a wary look but swept his hand before himself to open his inventory and pull out the gleaming and eerie items anyway.

"Half a stack, in case they break," he returned, tossing the sphere towards Dream. "Remember when I said not to make the same mistakes I did? Self-exiling myself might have been my biggest one. Just F-Y-I, y'know?"

"I'm aware," Dream agreed, pocketing the Eyes. "Thank you, for everything." He paused, then huffed again, shifting in place to stretch his legs while Sky typed into a command window. "Listen.. if.. if shit goes bad for me.. and I don't make it.. don't blame yourself. My choices are my own, right? My life, my mistakes to make, and I'm owning them." Dream looked askance at the Butter King, grim look on his face. "I won't bear someone else's fuck-ups for them, so you better not bear mine. Do what you gotta do. I've got my own song to sing."

Sky nodded, a small grin on his face. Then, with a tap of his finger on the screen, he was gone, air rushing in to fill the void of displacement.

Dream gave a cocky little salute and headed off, starting with a few walking steps, building up to a jog and then to a full on run, racing over the last of the plains to hit the path that wound up the hill.

\---

Walking into the village, Dream kept his hood up and mask in place, the collar of his cloak tugged up to shield his mouth and trap the warm air he breathed. In a way, he found it a lucky thing to do. One of the first things he noticed as he walked the cobble pathways were wooden bulletin boards constructed at various gathering points for the villagers and Avatars. Among the many signs and image maps stuck onto them was a large 'poster' of sorts, a Wanted image that bore his name and previous appearance, including the royal blue cape of the Sky Army that he had lost in the Nether long ago.

The reward listed below his image was almost impressive. Five hundred emeralds for information that would lead to his capture. A warning was also listed, a simple word; Dangerous.

Dream rolled his eyes, walking away as another Avatar walked up to the poster and pulled it down, tossing it onto the cobblestone and setting it on fire with a flint and steel, fanning the flames with a corner of their cloak that flickered briefly into a wing.

The market in the village was thriving with stalls and shops. Dream drifted from place to place, buying supplies and equipment and upgrades. A blacksmith gave him a chance to stop and toss useless items into their pool of lava to destroy and clean up his inventories. Extra weapons and gear he picked up as mob drops or loot from the taiga biome dungeon were sold to balance out his expenses. He kept the Twin Bow that had dropped from the giant mob, finding its abilities useful.

There was a Nether Portal on the far end of the market, currently sealed off by a circle of Recruits guarding it and turning away Avatars who tried to gain access to the public build. Dream looked it over from his hiding place, pressing close to leaf blocks used to decorate a flower shop and peering through the spaces between the leaves. Probably had been a good idea to ask Sky for the Eyes while he was around with his Creative Mode access, if easy access to the Nether Portals was currently impossible.

Well, there wasn't anything stopping him from going out to find a lava pool to make his own portal, but going into Herobrine's home turf was asking for trouble at this point.

He left the area, tugging his collar higher and exhaling to warm his neck and hold back the chill of the heights. The day was getting late and a room to rent for the night would be good. A large tavern and inn build had caught his eye when he first came to the village; it was sturdily built and aesthetically pleasing, so it must be fairly well kept and have ample room. Since it was pressed close to the hillside, there was a chance it carved into the biome for extra space.

He passed another of the Wanted posters on the way towards the inn and grumbled under his breath in irritation at the sight. Nothing to do about it; Sky Army was wasting resources trying to find him, but at least he had a friend on the inside trying to pull them back. He kept moving as a tall Avatar dressed in a yellow sweater and red beanie stepped up to the poster and pulled it down, looking it over before turning their head slightly to watch him walk on.

\---

The innkeeper was one of the vanilla villagers. They tapped at an image map mounted on the wall behind them that displayed their prices. Dream sighed at the cost as he swiped open his inventory to pull the required emeralds. Behind him the rest of the building was decently filled with people, villagers and Avatars enjoying meals and drinks and entertainment. A simple wooden stage with a jukebox was set up so discs could be played or Avatars could stand and perform for the crowd. One was already there, singing a song drunkenly but getting emeralds tossed her way all the same.

"Twenty emeralds is pretty expensive for a night's stay; does that even include a meal or two?" Dream protested even as he set the gems down on the counter. The villager hummed grumpily at him, sweeping a hand out quickly to snatch the money and toss it into a hopper to be sent away to wherever they banked their valuables. "Geez, was just askin'," Dream huffed, waiting for them to finish fetching his room key from the back room.

The drunken singing went near screech, earning a round of boos from the audience and making Dream's skin crawl, flinching at the sound. Did that Avatar mess up on purpose? What even was she singing?

The innkeeper returned with an enchanted tripwire hook, placing it on the counter in front of Dream. He picked it up with a quiet _'Thanks'_ and moved towards the dining area to investigate the menu. He still had a decent amount of money from mobs dropping emeralds thanks to the Dungeons crossover and all the items he had sold. A good meal would do his mood wonders.

He made his order at the kitchen counter for meat buns and apple juice, then went to take a seat at a table in a corner, a good position to be lost in the crowd but still see the entrance to the inn. Once the drunken Avatar stepped down from the stage another took her place and fiddled with the jukebox, possibly to play a disc or access the custom music plugin that Minecraftia had adapted long ago. A waiter came by to deliver his food and Dream flipped a few emeralds their way for a tip before digging in, a pleasant melody now drifting from the jukebox as the audience cheered and turned back to their own meals and idle chatter.

_"Oh, Dream~!"_

The meat bun fell out of his hands onto the plate as Dream went rigid, eyes widening as the music passed over him. He felt electrified, energized, a buzzing under his skin that danced over him while lyrics played on. What was it Sky had said, during the song lessons?

_"You'll have access to my Sky Songs that I've written into the book, but unless your Player sang them, the effects will be weaker compared to if I sang them. Hey, if you ever come across a song that's specifically made for you, and you're a popular Youtuber's Avatar so there's **bound** to be one, then it'll tie itself to you and that'll be yours to grant effects with. A Dream Song, if you will. You'll recognize it when it happens; the feeling is like a rush of energy that you just want to explode with and share with others."_

He bit down on his lip, eyes tearing behind his mask as he tried to hold in that energy rush, one leg already tapping out the rhythm of the song under the table. What were the odds of one finding him now?! Here?!

_"~Flying like a bee, black and yellow energy~; Only me on my team, naturally!"_

Dream hurriedly finished as much of the food as he could, gulped down the juice, then bolted from the dining area, ignoring the cheers of the people that spotted him run by and assumed whatever they were assuming.

He collided with a taller Avatar that was on their way into that area, pushed himself away with a hasty apology, and darted up the stairs to the next floor. The faster he could get away, the sooner he could lock himself away in his room and scream. Running was burning the excess energy, but there was still far too much racing through him, making him almost dizzy.

Down below, standing still where he'd been bumped into by the green-cloaked Avatar was the same figure that had pulled down the poster of Dream from the market lane. He tilted his head a bit, then smiled widely, lifting a hand to look down at the enchanted tripwire hook he slipped out of the smaller Avatar's pocket before turning to walk up the stairs at a more sedate pace.


	22. 30. Overwhelmed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The accumulation of stress threatens to fracture Dream's mental defenses, despite gaining a song of his own. Herobrine takes advantage of a moment of weakness to add more stress, even as the goal of reaching Fundy is well within sight.

30\. Overwhelmed

The door rattled as Dream tried to get into the room. His 'key' was missing, he had no idea where or when he dropped it, and the buzz of energy had him bouncing in place. Just as he was debating whether it was worth it to get his axe and just break down the door, a bit of movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention.

His key was tossed gently through the air and landed in the hopper, unlocking the door to his room.

"What?" Dream managed to ask in confusion before he was bodily lifted from the floor, a hand covering his mouth and muffling his yell of surprise, his arms pinned to his sides by another arm wrapping tightly around him. He thrashed wildly, kicking and trying to get traction against the walls of the inn. Whoever had him turned in place and walked backwards into his room, the door closing once they passed through.

In the near darkness of the room, Dream continued struggling, still screaming in a panic through the iron grip over his mouth as his mask's tracking raced all over the room, seeking out anything to help him escape. It was nicely decorated, with flower pots, paintings, and various pieces of furniture. He kept kicking, throwing his feet back to drive his heels into the other figure and outward to knock over flower pots in hopes the sounds of them falling would alert someone.

_'No no no nonononono!'_

He was suddenly dropped once the center of the room was reached, and Dream immediately dove for one of the flower pots, spinning and hurling it at the shadowy figure waving arms around wildly and making some sort of noise at him. He was still screaming, unable to form words and throwing anything he could get his hands on. One gesture triggered the flick of his hotbar access and his diamond axe appeared in his grip. Without thinking, Dream leaped at his attacker, ready to bring the blade down on them.

The tall shadow rushed back from him, smacking into a lever that finally switched on the redstone lamp and lit up the room, revealing the lanky form of a curly-haired brunet in a yellow sweater and red beanie. His hands were up and waving around wildly, eyes wide, and Dream halted to stare at him. Slowly, the noises he couldn't process earlier out of sheer terror became words he could understand.

"-my god, I thought you were going to **kill** me, I'm **sorry** , that was a stupid prank, holy fucking _Christ_ , Dream, didn't you hear me when I was telling you who I was and that the joke was over?!" the taller Avatar babbled frantically. Dream just kept staring, even as he kept the axe trained on the familiar figure, their identity finally clicking into place in his mind.

"Wilbur, _what the fuck is **wrong** with you_?! Do you have **any** idea what the fuck-?! You scared the shit out of me!" he finally yelled in outrage, shaking all over from a mix of everything coming to a head.

WilburSoot rubbed his head, a sheepish expression on his face even as he followed the trembling movements of the diamond axe with his eyes. "I just wanted to give you a little spook for the hell of it but you completely lost your marbles and I was hoping to get you to calm down in here but you didn't and I thought you'd recognized me if I kept talking but it was like you didn't hear a word I said!" he said as the door to the room opened again and a blonde Avatar with a scraggly goatee and a green and white striped hat resting on his head poked his head in, blinking in surprise at the mess.

"What the fuck did you two do?" he asked in exasperation. Dream pointed up at the taller Avatar with his axe, still trembling.

"He scared the **shit** out of me, Philza! Do you have **any** fucking idea how on edge I've been for weeks now?!" he snapped and pushed his mask up onto his head to glare tearfully at both of them. "I have been chased, and ambushed, and held hostage, and drugged, and threatened to be sold or enslaved or killed by so many people and then this **idiot** fucking _grabs_ me and-!" Dream dropped to his knees, the axe falling out of his hand as he hugged himself tightly and wailed, the stress finally crashing down onto him.

A sharp crack sounded nearby, unheard compared to his pained cry.

Soft feathery wings wrapped around him, shielding him from the world as Ph1LzA sat on the floor by him, careful to keep a small amount of distance between them. Wilbur pulled the key from the hopper in the room itself, listened to the click that meant the door was locked, then sat down near the two Avatars, a somber look on his face.

"I am.. so sorry," he apologized again, quietly. "I should have realized, after seeing those posters about you.. that was in very poor taste for me to do to you." He lifted a hand to the wall of feathers hiding the speedrunner from sight, then let it drop.

"I'm.. so.. tired," Dream whispered hollowly, reaching up to brush fingertips against the wings domed over him. He met Ph1LzA's gaze, the older Avatar giving him a questioning look. "Why are you two even here?" he asked, closing his eyes as he pulled himself together as best he could. He couldn't afford to fall apart now. Bury it all, bury the fear, he'll deal with it in the End.

"Techno messaged me," Ph1LzA told him, folding his arms over his chest with a cool expression. "You ditched him and your friends to run to Fundy's alone. Why?"

"Oh my god, he snitched?" the smaller blonde complained, pushing himself up and flapping his hands at the wings. Ph1LzA pulled them away, letting them collapse back into the dark gray cloak he was fond of wearing. "It's fine, I'm fine, I just didn't want them to slow me down while I'm speedrunning," Dream declared dismissively as he sat on the bed and pushed back his hood to take off his mask and examine it.

A new crack marred the surface, splitting off midway through the first crack and stretching to the other eye. Dream clicked his tongue in irritation, putting the mask back on and adjusting it over his face. The other two Avatars looked at each other, then back at him.

"Seems more like you're on the run, if those posters are any indicator. What in Minecraftia happened that has all of Sky Army raging at you?" Wilbur asked with a tilt of his head, his hands shoved into his pockets.

_Don't speak of it, don't say. If they know, they'll just become targets too. Dangerous is right; **anyone** who gets close gets put in danger._

"You should go," Dream told them evenly, looking away. "Just.. forget you saw me. Pretend you don't know me. It's best for you." Again the two old Avatars looked at each other, then back at him. "And stop doing that!" the blonde yelled in frustration. "Just go! Get out of my room!"

"Well, that's just too fuckin' bad, cuz we already know what's goin' on thanks to Techno," Ph1LzA chuckled drily, examining his nails as if being in a room with the vessel of the Herobrine Virus wasn't a big deal. "It's gonna take them a bit longer to get here, but we got the okay to escort you to Fundy's in the meanwhile."

"What?!" Dream asked in alarm and confusion. Techno and the team were coming after him? How?! Without the Manhunt Compass, they wouldn't know his path; northwest was too vague and the extreme hills biome too vast to pinpoint his exact location. "How are they following me?! I took the Compass!"

"Yeah, about that," Wilbur chipped in, bouncing on the balls of his feet, "you took **a** Compass. Techno had a bunch more he took from George's stash at your house as backup, so now he, George, Sapnap, and Bad each have a Manhunt Compass." He scratched delicately at his nose. "Just, y'know, in case you try to steal one again, but um.. I could take George's Compass away if you.. _ifyougooutwithme_."

Dream gave him an uncomprehending stare before looking back at Ph1LzA. "They **all** have a Compass now?" he echoed and dropped his head back to groan out loud, oblivious to Wilbur's face turning red and Ph1LzA rolling his eyes at the brunet. "Whatever, _fine_ , you can come with me, but only as far as Fundy's!" he declared and pointed at the door. "Now out! I didn't pay for multiple people to be in here!"

"Oh, yeah, no, I know, it's why I rented the room next door," Ph1LzA told him cheerfully, holding up his own enchanted tripwire hook and wagging it teasingly. "I'll get out of your hair then." He stood up as though ready to leave, then turned to give Dream a concerned look. "But, are you _sure_ you're alright? That scream of yours.. I'm worried about you."

"I'm okay, Philza, really," Dream told him with a sigh. "I've just been really stressed and that prank didn't help but Wilbur apologized and it's fine. We're good. I just need some sleep in a decent bed and things will get better."

"Would cuddles help?" Wilbur asked, scratching at his chin as he rocked back and forth on his feet. "I know when I've had a bad day.. what really helps me relax is.. is some nice cuddle time."

"Normally, I'd say sure, why not, but I'm **really** not comfortable with being held right now, okay?" Dream sighed, holding out his hand. "Please give me my room key." Wilbur tossed it gently towards him, allowing him to grab it out of the air without any physical contact. "Thank you. Goodnight, Wilbur."

"Sweet dreams, Dream," the curly-haired Avatar returned and left with Ph1LzA.

Dream waited for the door to click and trigger the lock before he lay back to stare at the ceiling. This complicated things, but hopefully he'll be able to shake his new guards after the meeting with Fundy.

\---

The dead wind flowed over the End island, the milk-white landscape still devoid of dragons and crystals, the Endermen all giving the center wide berth. Dream sat on the rim of the bedrock fountain, face turned away from the malevolent being that sat beside him in an unfairly relaxed pose.

 _"Has it begun to sink in yet? The inevitable truth you struggle against each day?"_ Herobrine asked, luminous white eyes looking over the Void sky of the End.

 _"Na na na na na na, I'm better off not listening, na na na na na na, I've got my own song to sing,"_ Dream replied in melody, softly singing the lyrics he heard. He flinched slightly when his jaw was roughly grabbed, head wrenched around to face the glowering Virus, but he steadied his expression to match His glare rebelliously.

 _"My old host has been filling your head with baseless hope. His power has weakened drastically, but yours is growing, swelling, by the day. It **will** be mine,"_ the Virus growled.

"Or what? I've already ditched my friends so your stupid Cultists won't be able to find them with their compass and now you can't use them as bargaining tools against me," Dream sneered, baring teeth at Him. Herobrine shook His head, a crooked smile and low laugh bringing ill tidings.

 _"You thought to protect them that way? Such a foolish child,"_ He said with a huff, rising from the bedrock and lifting Dream from it as well. The blonde gripped His wrist with both hands, struggling as he was held aloft. _"All you've done is leave them defenseless, with nothing to bargain with for their lives. If they're of no use to strike deals with you, then it's best to whisper to my followers to simply kill them on sight."_

"No!" Dream hissed, kicking out at the Virus and wincing as fingers dug into his throat, cutting off air and blood flow. Spots immediately peppered his vision. "Stop.. _stop_! I.. breathe..."

 _"Listen to yourself, so weak and pitiful, so easy to **break** ,"_ Herobrine crooned. _"It would be a mercy for you to just give yourself up to me. What makes you think you stand a chance? Your silly Manhunt victories? Flee before me, little speedrunner; your tricks and traps are but toys to me. I'll hunt you down from within your own mind."_

The spots grew larger, wider, as Dream's struggling waned, until his field of view turned black.

\---

Wilbur chewed obnoxiously loud, grinning at the annoyed look on Ph1LzA's face as they waited outside of Dream's room for him. "Swear to god, it's like you do that only to get reactions out of me and everyone else," the caped Avatar muttered under his breath with a roll of his eyes. Wilbur only laughed and resumed eating his jerky less noisily.

There was a click and the door opened, letting Dream emerge from the room. His hood was pulled up again, cracked mask in place over his face, mouth set in a neutral line; there was no indication he was even aware of the two friends standing nearby. Ph1LzA raised an eyebrow in concern, glancing over at his companion who put the food away with a worried expression. "Good morning, Dream; did you sleep decently, I hope?" he greeted the shorter Avatar cautiously.

Dream tilted his head, looking up at him silently. "I.. we should..." he began, halted, then tried again, as though unable to pick which of several things to say to actually speak. That was fairly normal for him, as his mind often sped ahead and his mouth ran away with his words to try and keep up. "Fundy should be expecting us, so let's get onto the highway. And good morning," he finally settled on and headed for the stairs. Ph1LzA and Wilbur followed after him, tripwire hooks in hand to turn in to the innkeeper.

"What about breakfast?"

"Not hungry."

Among some of the things Dream had bought for the journey was a charm that summoned a pet baby chicken. He tied it to the strap across his chest, tucked under the cloak and close to his shoulder for easy access. He brushed fingers over it, activating the summon, and watched carefully as the pet looked around aimlessly like its A.I. directed. After a few moments, the chicken's eyes gleamed red and it turned to look up at him and his companions. Dream showed it the charm under his cloak, nodding at it, and the red eyes faded back to black.

"What was that about?" Wilbur asked, watching the silent exchange in interest.

"Letting a friend know he's got a way to contact me," Dream replied vaguely and walked on, the baby chicken scampering to keep up. "Let's go."

\---

The highway through the extreme hills biome was constructed hastily during the Viral Wars to traverse the biome and transport large quantities of gold from the badlands beyond the extreme hills. It was two blocks wide, made of cobblestone, and stretched nearly two thousand blocks through the air, suspended purely on Minecraftian laws of physics, with smaller branch roads that split off to connect to other hills. When the wars ended, the highway was expanded to accommodate large groups of people traveling in clusters instead of single file, becoming four blocks wide with rest stops jutting out from the sides of the highway.

At some point wheeled carts ended up in use, drawn by horses. Was that something influenced by Dungeons?

From the back of one such horse-drawn cart, Dream looked out at the landscape passing by, chin resting in one hand. The clatter of wooden wheels on cobblestone and stone bricks lulled him into a waking doze, which suited him for now. After Herobrine's visit, Dream had jolted awake with his hands over his mouth to hold in a scream and couldn't go back to sleep. The rest of the night he stayed awake, washing his face and tending to soreness around his neck that made it painful to talk and eat. How much stronger was the Virus getting despite being held in stasis by the artifacts? There weren't any visible marks on his skin, yet Dream could still feel as though a phantom hand held its grip over his throat.

The baby chicken perched on his knee, looking up at him with red eyes.

Wilbur hummed different melodies, trying to build a new song, from his seat on a chest in the cart. Ph1LzA sat up front, chatting with the Trader Villager about their goods and the state of the markets in the other hill villages and trade stations. According to the Trader, Fundy had made a trek to the main village for supplies and research materials. Dream felt a bright flare of hope at hearing the news. Maybe he could finally get rid of the Virus soon?

They were dropped off part of the way, but a decent amount of time was knocked off their traveling by taking the ride with the Trader. They walked along the highway with other travelers on their half of the road, watching the occasional cart pass by.

Mixed in with some of the travelers were Recruits and Cultists, so there had been some exciting fights there on the road, resulting in Avatars and villagers fleeing for their lives while blades clashed and arrows flew back and forth. It broke up the monotony of travel for a day or two but left Dream feeling more drained after each encounter.

"How are these fucks _finding_ you? Thought only George could make the Manhunt Compasses and Techno destroyed whatever of them he didn't take," Ph1LzA commented as they walked, shaking one wing off to disperse the particles from a splash potion that had expired.

"They've got compasses that look for the Herobrine Virus in high amounts," Dream replied, examining his axe and reading over the tags through the mask's analysis. "I'm a magnet for 'em right now." He flicked it away and looked up at one hill with a sprawling home built onto its peak.

Finally, Fundy's house and code research lab. Relief was soon to be in sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While the Avatar's name is spelled 'Ph1LzA', his name is spoken by the others as 'Philza' or 'Phil' to keep with the phonetic of the alphabet rather than speak the spelling.


	23. 10. Darkness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fundy is given the opportunity to help out Dream by analyzing his files to see where Herobrine has infected him so as to create a safe way to remove the Virus. But in trying to be merciful to Dream by putting him into an unconscious state for the procedure, the group inadvertently traps him in the dream state that allows him to confront Herobrine directly and leaves him vulnerable to outside forces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: Forcibly dislocated limb

10\. Darkness

Fundy's house and lab stretched over several chunks of land, filled with different kinds of constructs and redstone builds as well as his living spaces and farms. The fox-like Avatar gave Dream, Wilbur, and Ph1LzA a small tour to welcome them as he filled them in on his work.

When he first received Techno's message about needing to meet about code work involving Avatars and modifications, Fundy sought out as much material as he could on everything available about Avatar coding. There wasn't a lot out there, and what he could find had sections that were obviously obfuscated. Many of the books and research papers were written by Setosorcerer, Sky Army's mini-mod master, so the information (that could be seen) should be accurate.

"Okay, so I've got this wealth of new knowledge about coding for Avatars and making modifications to their code and stuff, but what is this all **for**?" Fundy asked in confusion, tail flicking nervously. "I feel like I'm stepping into some dangerous territory." Ph1LzA and Wilbur both looked to Dream as the speedrunner stepped forward. He opened his mouth, hesitated, then tapped his fingertips together. Fundy tilted his head, looking him up and down, and flicked an ear. "You changed your skin here to match that weird white blob on green background one in the upper servers? This is how Minecraftia figured out how to make it?" he asked.

"I need your help," Dream blurted out, pressing one hand to his chest. "Do you know about those strange arrows the Cultists have been shooting at everyone?" Fundy nodded, ear flicking again. "I was hit by one, and it uploaded Herobrine's source code into me," he went on with a grimace.

"Wait, _what_?! You've got the guy all of Minecraftia was at war with years ago _**inside**_ you?!" Fundy exclaimed, drawing back in alarm. "He's supposed to be able to overwrite His host and take control of their body so how are you-?!"

"It's... it's a long story," Dream sighed, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

Around a table in Fundy's dining room, with plates of home-cooked meals served out, the Avatars listened as Dream, in stuttered sentences that he struggled to get out, shared his experiences up to that moment, from the encounter in the Nether that resulted in him being shot in the back with the arrow, to the theft of the Anti-Viral Artifacts to save his life, to going on the run with his friends to find Fundy, his abduction by the Illagers and close call with nearly being sold to rogue Recruits, the new Viral Mode, everything he could recall. Some things Dream withheld, and while the other three Avatars had a sense that there were things he wasn't sharing, they were kind enough to not push on those subjects at the moment. By the time he was done, Dream was exhausted, face buried in his arms on the table while the others sat in their chairs, food cold before them, and tried to process everything.

"Good god, that's a lot of traumatizing shit to happen to any single Avatar," Ph1LzA finally murmured, stunned by the story.

"This probably wouldn't have happened if Clay wasn't so eager to grow his channel so fast," Wilbur pointed out and ducked from the baked potato Dream managed to pull himself up to throw at him in irritation.

"So the artifacts are your cloak's clasp and your mask?" Fundy asked curiously, moving his chair closer to the blonde to examine the items. He gestured to the mask. "May I?"

"Sky said I can't take them off, sorry. Gonna have to check them while I wear them." Dream replied drily, turning in place to grant the fox Avatar easier access. Fundy nodded, running his fingers lightly over the white surface of the mask and the golden clasps of the strap that held it in place.

"The enchanted gold makes sense here; gold is the carrier metal for the immunizing aura," he muttered and traced the cracks. "What's with the cracks on the mask, though? That's not part of your upper server skin."

"Dunno. Stress fractures? They kinda mess with my vision through the mask but I can still see and track stuff anyway."

Fundy nodded absently before reaching for the clasp, going still when Dream flinched and pulled back, one hand rising to it protectively. "I'm not removing it, I just want to take a cursory look," he said calmly. The blonde took a steadying breath and lowered his hand, holding still as Fundy lifted the clasp and peered at it. "Hm, same look as your mask but not cracked. Shimmers with the aura like the gold but this isn't gold. This used to be Sky's Amulet, right?" he muttered to himself, angling the circle in different ways. "Both artifacts are used to keep Herobrine's code in stasis or at least drastically slow the rate of the overwrite to decimal percentages, buying you time to figure out what to do. And removing the mask made it easier for you to trigger a Viral Wrath but drained a lot more energy compared to doing it with the mask on." Fundy looked up at the mask consideringly. "If the mask has been cracking due to immense stress, it may be that Herobrine's trying to induce that stress to weaken the sealing effect on Him."

"Can you remove Him from me, though? That's what I need most," Dream asked, pushing the mask up to rest on top of his head. Fundy eyed him carefully, humming in an uncertain tone.

"I'd have to see your files to get an idea of where He's got His coding threaded in before I can figure out a safe extraction course," he finally said in a careful voice. "I can't guarantee I'll be able to do it, but I can at least give you a better idea of what the damages are so far."

"Okay, let's give that a try, then," the speedrunner agreed and got up from his chair as Ph1LzA and Wilbur gave him surprised looks.

"What, _now_?" Ph1LzA asked incredulously, sitting up in his seat.

"I don't have time to waste if one of the artifacts is taking damage and multiple factions are hunting me down to get at the code inside me!" Dream argued, gesturing over himself before gripping his head. "I thought I could handle this! That.. that if I just thought of this as.. as another one of the Minecraft Manhunts, I'd be fine! I'd win it easy! But it's **not**! There's no rules to be followed like the real Manhunts!" he cried and walked away from the table to gesture wildly at the scenery outside Fundy's window. "They're out there doing everything they can get away with to come after me and not caring one bit about who gets caught in the middle! The woodland mansion, the jungle dungeon exit, the oak forest village, the fucking highway to here! All of them turned into battlefields of some kind and innocent people getting hurt because of..!"

His shoulders sagged under the weight of his unspoken thoughts before Dream straightened and squared them determinedly. "I need my files analyzed now, Fundy," he said firmly, turning to the fox Avatar, "please."

\---

The lab where Fundy did much of his programming and testing was crowded with books, papers, and redstone items scattered over table surfaces or piled onto shelves. Command blocks were stacked in a corner, waiting to be used. The group carefully maneuvered around the messy obstacles while Fundy headed straight for a relatively new section of the building, comprised mainly of piece of furnishing that looked a bit like a medical examining chair with a large machine pointing a long thin 'needle' of sorts at it, an empty glass chamber set into the base of the needle, and a console set up nearby with several screens floating over it in hibernation.

"So I got this set up after a lot of research, and I mean like a **lot**. I'm pretty sure it's nowhere near as good as the equipment Setosorcerer probably used to create that Third Anti-Viral, but this will let us access an Avatar's file system to do pretty much anything we want to it," Fundy explained hurriedly, grabbing a book and quill from off a shelf and switching on the machines. It all came to life with soft hums and the fox gestured over at the chair. "Dream, sit in that and grant access to your systems so we can start a scan and run a comparison to an average Avatar's file system."

Dream nodded and prepared to move forward, pausing when Ph1LzA's cape stretched forth to flare into a wing that blocked his way. "Are you absolutely sure about this?" the taller blonde asked him quietly.

"I'm _choosing_ this myself, and I trust Fundy. Just with that I already have more than that Third guy ever did when he got turned into whatever I am now," Dream replied just as softly and managed a grin. "I'll be okay." Ph1LzA eyed him warily but eventually nodded and pulled his wing back, letting it merge back into the cloak. "Fundy, there's something else I'd like you to do, if you can."

"Yeah, sure, what is it?" Fundy replied absently, scribbling initial readings into the book with the quill as he looked over the machine warming up and the screens displaying standby information.

"Make a copy of my Core File and keep it safe," Dream requested. The three Avatars went still as the words hung in the air around them. Fundy's hand froze mid-word, and his eyes flicked up to meet the blonde's, one ear twitching nervously.

"Your.. Core File? The very thing that makes you.. **you**?" he asked slowly, incredulously. "You want me to make a copy of what is basically your mind, soul, personality, and memories?" Dream nodded. "Why?"

"Just in case you guys need it," the speedrunner replied with a deceptively casual shrug. _'In case I'm converted into Herobrine, and you need a way to force me back to myself,'_ was the unspoken but still heard answer.

"Alright, just lemme get another of these to store it on.. since, y'know, we **don't** have special Avatars with space carved into their souls to contain a whole other soul and the power to perfectly duplicate other Avatars onto themselves for easy sacrifice just laying around the lab or whatever," Fundy mumbled in awe, waving the book and quill in his hand as he went looking for another.

"Doing anything to your files while you're awake is going to hurt like hell. You're aware of that, right?" Wilbur asked worriedly as Dream took his place on the chair under the analysis machine.

"Make me some Suspicious Stew and it won't be a problem. Our files are adjusted and updated whenever we sleep naturally, so obviously being unconscious means changes to them won't be felt," he replied with a dismissive wave of his hand to hide the tremble in it. Wilbur narrowed his eyes at the speedrunner.

"You want us to drug you with the same stuff that those Illagers used? That's pretty damn mean," he grumbled but walked away towards the kitchens to make the food anyway. When he returned a few minutes later, Fundy had set a book and quill into the glass chamber of the machine and was now preparing to activate it, his own notes set aside on a lectern for easy access to write on. Wilbur passed the dish over to Dream before stepping back to join Ph1LzA at the console with Fundy.

"What's that for?" the fox asked in confusion, noticing the food. Wilbur explained the effect of it on Dream and the confusion cleared. "Good idea, actually. Hey, Dream, before you pop off to sleep, could I get your Core File access code?"

"Clay," Dream replied, spooning the stew into his mouth hurriedly, twitching slightly to fight against the urge to spit the food back out. Once he had enough, he flicked the rest of the stew away into his hotbar and lay back in the chair, taking a deep breath and letting the effects run through him.

The world blurred and grew dark, hazy. His limbs felt heavier, and moving seemed like too much effort to try and do. His eyes fluttered closed, and he sank away into the darkness that was both familiar and unnerving, helpless to do anything about either feeling.

\---

"He's out cold," Ph1LzA reported, lifting Dream's arm and checking for a pulse, fingers pressed lightly against his neck as well. Slow, barely there, but steady. "He wasn't kidding about that part where the Illagers kept drugging him to keep him under their control," he sighed with a shake of his head. He arranged the smaller blonde to be more comfortable, then joined Fundy and Wilbur at the console again.

"Okay, gaining access to Dream's Core File for copying.. _now_ ," Fundy announced, typing onto the screen before himself. The needle pointed in Dream's direction glowed, firing a thin white beam into the Avatar's chest, piercing through to his heart. A second screen popped open beside the first in front of Fundy, displaying a warning and a box for entering a password. Inside the glass chamber, the book and quill opened, pages fluttering and ready to receive data.

"I'm getting chills, like we shouldn't be doing this," Wilbur whispered with a grimace, rubbing his arms through his sleeves.

"Inputting access code: CLAY," Fundy went on, tapping out the letters into the screen and pressing the warning. The screen cleared, closed, then reopened, data streaming upwards in scripted language, written in the enchanted alphabet. In the same breath, Dream's body twitched, a sphere of light blooming into view where the needle's beam pointed into him. Fundy flicked open another pair of screens, typing first in one, then the other. "Accessing base Avatar files for Dream and control group for comparison analysis," he reported, then swiped at the air next to the Core File window, opening another screen. "Duplicating Core File to designated key item.. _now_."

A download bar bloomed over the two screens, showing progress visually as a second thread of light spiraled slowly around the machine's beam from the sphere hovering over Dream. It wound across the beam until it merged with it and flowed into the glass chamber, where it shone onto the pages of the book and rapidly etched enchanted lettering and script at incredible speed. Ph1LzA watched it with a sickened awe, unable to look away from the transfer of data.

"And this was done to another Avatar against their will? Without an access code to the Core File, they'd have to brute force it open to reach it, and if they were awake during it..." he muttered and held a fist up to his mouth, face turning a bit grey as he pulled his mind away from thinking further on it.

"Trying **not** to remember that, Phil," Fundy muttered, scanning the base files with another series of commands. "This trust Dream's given us; it's pretty heavy. Why don't you two do me a favor and run a check around the property? If Avatars keep finding him with those coded compasses, then we don't want them showing up while he's at his most vulnerable." The other Avatars nodded and left the lab, grabbing lanterns from a shelf as they passed.

\---

Hours passed.

Wilbur and Ph1LzA made periodic checks around the perimeter, making sure hidden observer blocks had clear views of the land, before returning to the lab to watch over the process.

There were brief times Dream came close to waking up during the copying process as the Suspicious Stew effects expired. Wilbur cooked more of the meal and Ph1LzA spoon fed it to the smaller blonde with a grim look, looking into green eyes staring up at him, lidded and empty of conscious thought. He always considered Dream's sharp and creative mind one of his best weapons for any situation; to see it so fogged and dulled, made useless by a drugged soup, felt almost like a personal offense.

The copying of his Core File was completed, and Fundy immediately resealed it and closed the window, letting the sphere of light sink back into Dream's body. The glass chamber no longer held a book and quill after the transfer was done; instead a small white figure with a familiar smiling face floated within. No arms or legs, simply a round white head on what looked like a cone body. A tiny lime green hood and cloak wrapped around it, clasped at the 'neck' with a tiny circle of gold, the hood pulled up onto its head. It swayed and bobbed cheerfully, bumping the glass with its head in a playful tap as it closed its eyes to look even more happy.

"What is that? It's like a Vex or something?" Wilbur asked in confusion when he first saw it.

"It's more like.. a representation of Dream's soul and all that he is," Fundy explained, waving a hand absently as he studied the base files carefully. "Herobrine's code is pretty deeply entrenched here. I can see where He's trying to alter strings of data to get access to the Core File, but the changes revert almost immediately. Either the artifacts are forcing read-only onto those files or Dream is subconsciously fighting the spread by rewriting his own files himself." He scrolled through the pages of data of both screens, glancing back and forth between them. "Maybe even both."

"Can you remove Him entirely with this machine? Trap Him in another book and free Dream?" Wilbur asked hopefully.

"We'll have to store the copy of Dream's Core File somewhere for now but I still need more time to analyze where Herobrine's files are since He mixed Himself in multiple areas to avoid getting pulled out easily," Fundy returned with a harsh sigh. "Whoever programmed Him was pretty well versed in hindering extraction." He flapped a hand at the glass chamber. "Take it to the library for now, where my enchanting room is. It'll probably have fun parkouring around in there."

Ph1LzA opened the glass chamber and reached in, smiling fondly as the little hooded blob hopped into his open palms and beamed up at him cheerfully. "Keep an eye out, Wilbur," he called back as he left the lab, the little blob now hopping up his arm to his shoulder, then head, treating the taller Avatar as a moving parkour course.

\---

_"Do you honestly think anything you're doing will make a difference?"_ Herobrine asked indifferently, standing atop the bedrock fountain. Dream remained at the base of the build, back facing Him as he grinned out at the Void.

"Scared already?" the blonde asked with a chuckle. "I'm a speedrunner, I'm gonna look for every advantage I can use to get ahead." He tapped out a rhythm with his heels, dancing subtly in place. "But I'm gonna do it without anyone else sacrificing themselves for me. I lead the Dream Team; I bear the burden first."

A hill on the End island exploded outward, Dream tumbling through the air from the blast. He twisted himself around, aiming to land on his feet and keep running while Herobrine leaped up after him, diamond pickaxe in hand. The Virus swung it at him, the blade managing to catch Dream across the back, splitting cloth and skin with the hit. Biting his lip to contain the cry of pain, the blonde focused harder on his landing and pushed off, racing over the field to put distance between himself and the enraged Virus. Endermen rushed to fill the space between them, their eyes flickering between purple and magenta.

"Never thought I'd see the day I could legitimately **hate** someone with every byte of data in me," Dream hissed, glaring up at the taller Avatar looming over him from atop the bedrock fountain. The speedrunner had been caught at the start of a chase in one of the resets of this mental meeting ground. Herobrine wasted no time tying him to the pillar of bedrock to keep him in place, leads bound tightly around his wrists and pulled back against it.

 _"Believe me, the feeling is mutual. If not for the potential use I could make of you, I'd just slit your throat and spare your 'friends' the misery of being in your presence,"_ He returned coldly. Dream huffed and strained to pull free, twisting back and forth in hopes of using the friction to break the leads. The brunet dropped down from above to stand before him, head tilting curiously. _"Or do you believe they actually care about you? You, rather than the profits they gain from association with you and your name?"_

"You obviously haven't kept up with me and my Player," Dream returned with false cheer. "They're free to use us to boost themselves. We _encourage_ it~! Helps them grow and I do love paying it forward since I'm so _pop-u-lar_ ~."

 _"There is little so sad in this world than to see someone stab themselves as a means of protecting against the pain of betrayal when others inevitably do the same,"_ Herobrine told him, a crooked smile spreading over His face when Dream turned away from Him. _"Did you think you have friends, little Dream? Did you believe in them with all your little heart?"_

"I do. I have friends and I trust them and I love them and I believe in them," the blonde shot back, glaring harder as he pulled on the bindings.

 _"Then why did you abandon them?"_ Herobrine asked softly, leaning closer towards him and watching Dream's eyes widen in realization. He smiled a little wider, reaching up to swipe a finger across the smaller Avatar's chin in mock affection before walking away to let him linger on whatever thoughts kept him frozen.

The dead wind howled over the arrangement of blocks left from detonations of Creepers and TNT. Dream leaped from block to block far ahead of Herobrine, flipping and cartwheeling over projectiles thrown at him from the Virus in His attempts to knock him from the course. Dodging an arrow had the blonde bend backwards, the heel of one foot hooked onto the edge of the block for an anchor.

"You're like a crocodile in a pool; snappy and annoying," Dream taunted, toothy smile bared at Herobrine far below him. "I don't remember the creepypastas saying you were _completely_ useless at parkour but chalk up another advantage for me!"

The Void's static-dusted darkness kept the island in dim light. A flash of brightness erupted from a detonation, starburst flare that twinkled briefly before the shockwave pushed through after. Dream tumbled through the wave, rolling bruised and battered over the milk-white End stone field before coming to a stop with a low groan. He struggled to get up from his prone position, bracing hands against the ground to push himself up. A scuffed black shoe slammed onto his back, pinning him down and forcing air out of lungs.

 _"Just like SkythekidRS.. how_ does _anyone stand to listen to you?"_ Herobrine asked evenly, watching the blonde struggle to claw his way to freedom. _"Yet you managed to harness such a following, perfect for my purposes. It won't be long now."_ He reached down, grabbing Dream's arm at the wrist and pulling it back and up. _"Here. Something to remind you of how ineffective you are,"_ the Virus murmured and wrenched the limb higher.

Dream's scream echoed throughout the Void for a countless length of time after.

\---

Redstone lamps set into the wall of the lab suddenly started flashing, and Fundy looked at them in alarm, Wilbur sitting up in his chair. The analysis was still on-going, infected files and Herobrine's code still being marked out for future removal. Dream remained still and asleep in the chair; there had been a strange flinch on his face at one point but his expression smoothed back out after.

"What's going on?" the brunet asked in confusion and jumped in place at the sound of explosions nearby.

"The perimeter's been breached! The building's under attack!" Fundy exclaimed in fear as Ph1LzA ran into the lab, wings flared defensively and the tiny white blob that was Dream's Core File copy perched on his hat.

"There's Recruits and Cultists fighting at the southern gate, both factions are making their way here!" he told them both, eyes wide and flicking over to the sleeping Dream. "They're trying to get to Dream! The walls won't hold for long; they have TNT and Creeper spawn eggs!"

"We **have** to get him out of here," Wilbur murmured, looking around in desperation. "Fundy, Fundy, is there another way out of here? And do you have enough information to work with in analyzing Dream's files?"

"I can copy his base files and store them to keep analyzing later; it won't take as long as the Core File and I can just do a quick dump." Another explosion rocked the building, dust sifting down from the ceiling as the Avatars looked up at the flickering lamps. Fundy swallowed hard and continued. "Buy me time, stall Sky Army and the Cultists. Just give me three minutes."

"Alright, three minutes, easy peasy. Do we have any Wither Skulls and Soul Sand?" Ph1LzA muttered, setting the little blob down on the counter near Fundy before rushing out with Wilbur following. Fundy watched them leave, then looked down at the copy.

"Gonna have to hide you from them, too. Any ideas?" the fox Avatar asked rhetorically. His eyebrows lifted in surprise as the blob hopped up and coasted over to one of his glowstone lamps, the blocks of shimmering light encased in trapdoors for aesthetic and decoration. It clicked open one of the trap doors, and tapped the glowing block before looking at him. Curious, Fundy flicked his hand to a pick and broke the glowstone into several piles of dust that the little Dream blob swept out of the empty space left behind. It clicked the trapdoor again, disappearing from view, but it shone from within the encasing all the same. Fundy blinked, catching on. "Oh, you really _are_ Dream's copy, aren't you? Clever little bugger," he murmured. With the trapdoors surrounding the little Core File copy while it shone, it blended right in with the other glowstone lamps.

He grinned at it, chuckling, then flicked his ears at the distant sound of fighting and yelling. Right, he had files to grab and an Avatar to evacuate. Back to work.


	24. 31. Fall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Ph1LzA and Wilbur hold back the warring factions approaching Fundy's home base, the continued confrontation between Herobrine and Dream results in warping Dream's view of himself and his relationships.

31\. Fall

Two squads of Avatars dressed in red capes or royal blue ones collided with one another even as they tore through everything Fundy had constructed on his lands. Mobs escaped from demolished farms, mingling in with the masses and adding to the chaos. TNT and Creepers detonated periodically, clearing a ruined path inwards and dealing damage to both sides that got negated via potions and food.

From the building several dozen blocks away, Ph1LzA and Wilbur raced out with bows and arrows and Ender Chests. Wilbur set himself to firing flame arrows from his enchanted bow, arcing them into both factions to detonate any TNT early and hold them at bay. The blonde beside him flicked his hand aside to pull up an Optifine screen and pressed fingertips to the zoom icon, squinting as he looked over the close-up of the warring factions.

"Looks like they're more interested in trying to kill each other first so their opposite doesn't get a chance at Dream," he said drily. "Already have a few death messages in public chat."

"Long as my name doesn't pop up for them so they catch on we're shooting at them," Wilbur muttered and blinked in sudden thought. "Do you think any of them would be interested in some mule bits? Or bits of blue?"

"God, I hope Fundy dumps those files before I shoot myself with an arrow," Ph1LzA groaned, drawing back his own bowstring.

\---

The download bar was filling quickly as Fundy searched the chests around his lab for a bucket of milk. "Come on, _come on_ , gonna need to clear that status effect from Dream as soon as the copy's finished so we can get the heck outta here!" the fox muttered, tail bristling as he searched. He paused at the sound of something else moving around and looked over his shoulder.

A baby chicken perched on the console, looking at him with red eyes.

Fundy held still, ears flattening back against his hat and shoulders hunching as he watched it cautiously. What was with that mob? Did it come in with everyone at some point? He hadn't been paying attention to anything other than Dream and the coding problems he brought with him.

The chicken turned, breaking eye contact to look at Dream in the chair instead. Fundy followed its gaze and his ears immediately flicked up to alert. The speedrunner was shifting a little in the chair, grimacing slightly in his sleep. Was the status effect wearing off on its own?

"Wait, when was the last time Phil fed him that stew?" Fundy realized aloud and rushed to the console to check on the download. If the effect wore off before it finished, would it still hurt Dream? "C'mon, c'mon, seventy percent, just thirty to go!"

\---

Diamond blades crashed against each other, sparking bright in the dim End dimension. Herobrine lashed out with His sword, brute strength backing every strike and stab. Dream blocked and parried with his axe, losing ground steadily with each collision. He was battered from the duel, clothes torn and dirtied. One sword block rattled him a fraction of a second too long and Herobrine used it to slice the edge of His blade across Dream's side, ripping through the shirt and tearing a gash open.

The blonde cried out, falling backwards and curling to protect his injured side, hand pressing in to try and contain the bleeding. He shuffled, half dragging himself away from the Virus approaching him with ominously slow steps.

 _"Even using the same material as I do, you couldn't last long. If not for your voice and method of charming foolish masses, you'd truly be utterly useless,"_ Herobrine intoned.

"You only won because you're a Power Class!" Dream spat out bitterly, struggling to get to his feet despite feeling light headed from blood loss. Regen worked as best it could to heal the injury and a quick double sweep of one hand to flash open his status screen and close it showed his hunger bar would soon drop too low to sustain it.

 _"Can't even accept defeat with dignity,"_ the Virus simply returned. _"How are you capable of being loved by anyone? Of being admired? Perhaps your following pays attention to you only for the entertainment of watching you fail and fall into fits."_

Dream stepped backwards, glancing around desperately for something to work with, something to spark a plan to fight back. His breathing was getting harder to do, the pain radiating from his side was distracting, and every step he took pulled at torn flesh, sending fresh waves of agony that made him tremble visibly. He couldn't run, couldn't parkour, couldn't use crit attacks, he'd taken just the right kind of injuries to the right places to disable his speed and agility. Herobrine had used what He knew from battling the Speed Class Sky against him to devastating success.

"Shut up, _shut up_ , you don't **know** them! You don't know **me** , either!" Dream hissed, reaching back to steady himself against the slightly warm surface of one of the obsidian pillars. Herobrine gestured dismissively with one hand.

 _"What else is there to know? No one **cares** to see you succeed; you only think that and believe it because facing the truth terrifies you,"_ He said in a dispassionate tone. He lifted the diamond sword in one hand and rested the tip against the base of Dream's neck. _"Admit this, and I will allow you to pass this moment with no further humiliating defeats."_

\---

"They're already tearing up the melon farm. The pistons are messing with their forward momentum, but we'll only have a couple more farms and fences before they get here and they brought a lot of TNT," Wilbur reported nervously, firing several more flame arrows into the crowd and several mobs that caught fire raced around among them. Ph1LzA dug into his Ender Chest for supplies, a stack of brick blocks already in one hand.

"Send a message to Fundy, get a better idea of how much time he still needs to finish the data dump. We need to get Dream out of here and it'll be easier to do if he's awake and able to do his speedrunning to escape," the taller blonde told him quickly and flared his cloak out into wings again. "I'm going to build extra walls, try and slow them down more or at least make it harder for those damn explosions to clear paths." With a jump and a flap, he was airborne, making his way as close to the fighting as he dared.

Wilbur typed out the inquiry into the chat screen, eyes flicking up to monitor Ph1LzA's situation regularly. A reply came almost immediately.

_[ItsFundy whispers to you: Just one more minute. Warning, Dream's waking up too soon and there's none of that soup around. Also his pet chicken scares me.]_

"There is not enough blue in the world to make up for that if he wakes up early," the brunet sighed, pulling back the bowstring and firing into the crowd to keep them from shooting up at Ph1LzA.

\---

"Oh, come on, now you're just messing with me," Dream returned with a roll of his eyes and a laugh that was a little more forced than he'd admit. He kept a hand pressed to his side, hyper aware of the sharp point prodding his throat with every shuddering breath he took. "I can access Youtube from within Minecraftia; the videos where I win get way more views! I'm loved for winning challenges! You're just another stepping stone for me!"

 _"Ah, yes, they love to see you rise,"_ Herobrine crooned, _"And then when you finally fail.. oh, all the excitement spirals so wildly. They cheer and gasp and are amazed."_ He smiled when Dream stared at him warily. _"After all, the only thing better for them to admire over a hero's rise to greatness.. is seeing that hero fall and shatter. They love you for winning, but they love you **more** for losing."_

Was that.. no, that _couldn't_ be true. Technoblade also had love and adoration for winning anything he put himself to, an amazing pvper that tore through challenges and duels with almost unfair ease. And yet he still couldn't attain the heights Dream currently held. What was the difference? The algorithm?

_'Technoblade never loses. He's not **allowed** to lose.'_

The videos where Dream loses challenges. They gained nearly as many views as his wins.

Did training to be better mean nothing at all in the end? If he could just as easily gain by failing?

\---

Fundy's ears twitched at the sound of a sharp crack and he looked aside from the download progress to pinpoint where that came from. Dream's mask had gained a new fault, a substantial crack that ran up from near his chin to the center of the mask, bisecting the smile. Dream shifted in the chair again, breath hitching as his mouth opened slightly, a soft whine escaping him.

"Uh, what just happened?" Fundy asked the chicken rhetorically, blinking as a warning box popped up on the two comparison screens. He gestured towards them, bringing them floating closer to examine what caused the alert.

Several of Dream's files which previously resisted Herobrine's alterations and remained unmarked by the identification process had flipped. Fundy stared at them, waiting and willing them to revert like they'd done before, changes unmade by Dream's refusal to submit.

The program marked them as infected.

"What.. what's _happening_?" the fox whispered, stunned by the display.

\---

The walls Ph1LzA built were hastily made constructs several blocks wide and only a few blocks tall. There were times he ducked behind the brickwork, wings pulling close to his body, to dodge stray attacks that went his direction, tipped arrows and splash potions and the detonations of still more TNT.

_[ItsFundy whispers to you: Download's just about complete, get back here. New problems.]_

"Oh, what is it **now**?" the blonde sighed, pushing his short side-braid back behind his ear. The warring factions were getting closer; he already had to switch to a sword and kill a Cultist that spotted him and ran after him. His name probably got buried in the slew of death messages over there.

Well, if Fundy needed them back, it was time to go. He flared his wings, pushing off and heading back towards Wilbur, pointing at the building to let him know to go in. The brunet fired off a few last arrows, then bolted, bright yellow sweater making it easy to track his movements from the air. Ph1LzA swooped down, spilling air from his wings to slow himself, then pulled up beside his friend in a smooth transition from flight to run, the wings falling back into a cape again.

"Is it done? Can we move Dream out of here now?" Wilbur asked in a rush.

"Seems like it, but Fundy says we have a new issue to deal with," the blonde admitted.

\---

"My friends are coming. Nothing you say now is going to affect my relationships with them. It doesn't matter how I feel about myself, as long as I can protect them and I can rely on them to help me when I need it most," Dream told the Virus flatly, one hand rising to grab and push the blade away from himself. He walked away, limping, bruised, bleeding, numb but determined to put distance between himself and Herobrine.

 _"Ah, that's right. They will come for you, yes,"_ Herobrine agreed, lifting the diamond sword to watch the trail of crimson dribble down slowly. _"They have to rescue their golden goose after all."_

 _"I'm better off not listening, I'm better off not listening,"_ Dream muttered, hands clenching into fists as he continued moving forward. Herobrine only smiled.

 _"My voice is **your** voice. If you can't bear to hear the truth from me, then perhaps hearing it from theirs will serve,"_ He whispered and flicked the blade.

The chunk of End stone in front of Dream flickered and he paused, startled to see a hazy recreation of the MCC server before him. Technoblade stood there, arms folded over his chest and cocky grin on his face. A pink insignia was pinned to his royal attire.

"This'll be fun. It's like having the two rivals team up to take down a common foe," he said, words that were familiar, an old memory.

"And then they become best friends!" Dream heard himself say in the memory with a laugh.

The grin on Techno's face dropped to a neutral line. "Let's not get hasty," he corrected, and the hazy imagery faded.

Dream continued staring vacantly at the spot where the memory played, breath hitching and heart pounding. He shook his head. "No, no, he was just _joking_. That was how he pokes fun and we didn't really know each other at that time, so-," he stuttered.

"I'm going to simp so hard for this man. Hey, Dream, my Player's going to put your name in the title of the stream, so I'd better get lots of views and subs for it. Oh, our click rate is going to be so high!" Techno's voice rang out around him laughingly and Dream buried his face in his hands.

"No, no, **no** , it's a **joke** , we joke around with that, _stop twisting things around_!" he yelled.

"Does it bother you, green boy, huh, _huh_? Me sayin' your Player's name and callin' it pretty fuckin' stupid? Who names their kid after a Minecraft block?" TommyInnit's voice drifted in and Dream looked up in alarm, backing away from the hazy image of the young Avatar bouncing on his heels in front of him. "What about if I called you by his name? Hey, why don't you give me your stuff so **I** can be famous? Then I can get loads of girls! It'll be fun!"

Shaking his head, Dream turned his back on the mirage and started walking the other way, halting at the sight of George standing before a farm with seeds in one hand, planting in the rain. The blonde's eyes widened, head shaking back and forth in slow denial.

"What is that you need, Dream?" George asked him in a tone that sounded vaguely bored. His own voice replied, hollow and hurting in the memory.

"Love, and care..."

"Well, you're looking for it in the wrong place. Your Player's emotions are bleeding too much into you, and that can't be healthy," George replied quietly, resuming planting seeds as if the answer hadn't torn deeper into Dream's already frayed heart.

Did something else happen after that?

...

Did it even matter now?

Dream sat on the End stone, legs tucked under himself and shoulders slack, as he let the words pass over him in silence. This _couldn't_ be right, could it? But these were his own memories. How did Herobrine get access to his memories? Or was this his own mind, recalling these things, agreeing with Herobrine? Was this him admitting to himself that.. that they didn't _actually_ care about him? They loved him when he was on top and could pull them up with him, but if he stumbled and fell they backed away to avoid tripping with him; was **that** the truth he refused to see?

"My fans love me when I rise, they love me **more** when I fall," Dream murmured under his breath. "They **want** me to fall. If I fall, they can take my place, rise higher and gain fame." But, that _couldn't_ be right. He supported his friends, cheered their milestones with them, encouraged them however he could. Wasn't that being a good friend? Or were they just _using_ him to bolster themselves?

It didn't matter. Whether or not they actually cared about him or just used him for their own profit, _it didn't matter_. Dream still loved them all and he'd be damned before he let Herobrine go after them, or anyone else for that matter.

"They can go back to using me when I'm rid of you, when it's safe for them to use me again," Dream growled softly, glaring at the Virus standing on top of the bedrock fountain again. "Fundy will find a way to pull you out of me and his Player can monetize it all he wants. It'll be great clickbait for them. See? I don't give a **fuck** about it. If I'm _nothing_ but a _tool_ for my friends," his eyes flickered and blazed magenta, "then I'll be the **best** fucking tool in Minecraftia!"

\---

Fundy studied the screen carefully and lifted a finger to point at a section of script. "Look, there it is again," he told Wilbur and Ph1LzA, the two Avatars reading over his shoulders and blinking. "The data strings here just rewrote themselves and now they're flagged as infected."

"Herobrine's gaining more ground? But I thought the artifacts _prevented_ that!" Wilbur exclaimed in alarm. Fundy shook his head.

"That's the strange thing. It's not Herobrine converting these files; **Dream** is rewriting them, and it looks like he's setting up a severance function," he clarified and looked concerned. "I just can't see what he's cutting off access to, and who it is he cutting access from." The three of them looked aside at the tiny red-eyed chicken fluffing its feathers as it stared up at the screen with them. "I told you that chicken is scary," the fox added under his breath.

The download bar flashed and Fundy deactivated the machine, glancing at the redstone lamps. "The soup effects should be wearing off any second now. Phil, grab Dream. I've got a secret exit we can-."

Dream sat up suddenly, startling the Avatars and sending the chicken fluttering away. He breathed hard, as though from exertion, then growled and slid out of the chair, one hand pressing to his side briefly before he straightened up. The sounds of explosions and fighting were a little louder now, drawing closer to the building.

"Lucky," Ph1LzA sighed, "Dream, we need-."

"Take my Core File backup and get out of here. I'll take care of things," Dream interrupted, reaching up to push the cracked mask up onto his head. There seemed to be dark patches under his eyes, as though he'd been deprived of rest, and the green was now glowing magenta. Wilbur sucked in his breath, ducking behind Ph1LzA as Fundy went to the glowstone lamps and opened one of the trapdoors, holding out his hands for the tiny blob to hop in.

"Dream, are you okay?" Ph1LzA asked, concerned for the other blonde's appearance. One wing stretched out to drape over him but Dream stepped forward, moving towards a wall covered in image map blueprints.

"I'm fine. Take the backup and get out," he repeated shortly, scanning over the maps. He reached out and took one down, a flying machine blueprint awesamdude created for Fundy's use. He pocketed it and looked back at the group. "This place isn't going to be safe soon. I don't want you guys getting hurt, so please. _Leave_."

"Okay, Dream. Don't do anything dangerous to yourself, okay?" Fundy told him, collecting the data dumped files in a signed book and dropping it into an Ender Chest. He closed the lid and looked up at him. "We'll meet you at the bottom of this hill." Dream didn't reply, just lowered the mask over his face and raised his hood before turning and walking away, heading out of the building. "Something's not right, but I won't know for sure until I analyze his files." Fundy's ears twitched and he sighed. "Right, well, come on; I've got a hidden elevator we can take to the base of the hill."

\---

"Death to Sky Army! Lord Herobrine will rise again! Push them back! The host body is here!"

"Kill them all! Don't let a single Cultist escape! Find Dream and bring him in alive!"

The landscape was being torn apart by the fighting as Dream walked out across the scrubby yellow grass, calmly taking in the swarm of red and blue capes and cloaks smashing into each other and their surroundings. His lip curled at the sight. Factions warring over him, both wanting to possess him for the power he could give them. Why hadn't he seen it sooner?

He really was a very powerful tool to be utilized. But Dream had already made his choice on **who** he would allow to use him and it sure as hell wasn't either of these two idiot groups.

He lifted both arms, twisting and wrenching them upwards as Wither Skeletons burst up from the ground, magenta-eyed Endermen blipping onto the scene from nowhere. For a few moments, neither of the two squads took notice, but as the mobs rushed them both and started attacking, the chaos was realized and long-range attacks began to be directed his way. Dream sidestepped the arrows raining down towards him, moving gracefully into a dance, spinning around in twirls that whipped his cloak out to knock away still more arrows.

The mask continually tracked the projectiles coming down towards him, mapping their paths and angles, briefly displaying the code and data for everything around him, from the weapons and armor the incoming factions carried, to the mobs themselves, to the ground they ran on. If Dream wanted to, he could recode any of it. But perhaps it'd be more fun to mess with both groups first?

He broke into a smile. Oh yeah, he'd love to have some fun with them. Part of the fun of Minecraft Manhunt were the mindgames and psychological tricks and traps sprinkled throughout. He tapped out a beat on the grass with his feet and grabbed the edge of his cloak, snapping it upward to knock away another arrow. He hummed out the opening melody before singing aloud.

 _"Got my helmet on my head. Figure out what that zombie said. Lava all over the room. Got a half heart left, man, I am doomed~!"_ Dream called out in cheerful tune, staying on the move to dodge the incoming attacks of the encroaching groups that now struggled to fight off his magenta-eyed summons. _"Don't have any iron bars, my pick just broke into some shards. Scary noise, what should I do? Go left or right?"_ he swayed to each direction as he sang, avoiding poison-tipped arrows in time to the melody, _"I'll have to choose!"_

"Is that guy...?"

"..Singing a _Sky Song_?! What does he think he can do with **that**?! Only Sky can-!"

Dream stamped both feet down to ground himself, throwing a hand upward as new mobs burst up from the ground, wearing lime green capes and neckerchiefs held in place with netherite clasps to display their allegiance to him, eyes gleaming magenta. _"Visions of last time flash inside my mind. I'm scared! Oh well!"_ he sang out with a wide smile and lashed his arm down to point at the two factions looking around themselves in horror, _"And I'm pretty sure there's a big Creeper right there!"_

_[/summon creeper ~35 ~ ~ {ExplosionRadius:10,powered:1}]_

The charged Creeper puffed itself up in its lime green cape as the Cultists and Recruits ran from it in panicked screams. It detonated violently, blasting out a far larger hole than normal, and Dream used the blast as the cue for the song, throwing both hands up as Phantoms spawned above and swooped down to divebomb the scattered Avatars.

_"Don't mine at night!"_

_[Kappakorn was blown up by [Dream Creeper].]_

_[Lunabelle was blown up by [Dream Creeper].]_

_[Horus was blown up by [Dream Creeper].]_

_[Mitsugi was slain by [Dream Wither Skeleton].]_

_[Cecil was slain by [Dream Enderman].]_

Dream's chat screen filled with death messages that he glanced at briefly with a flick of his hand. Rather than continue the song, he switched to humming his favored trance music for speedrunning, running across the grass and sweeping his hands out to direct magenta light over the land. He'll have to apologize to Fundy later for the recoding. Grass blocks flickered in the light, changing their data and form as the startled groups' screams grew more frenzied, mixed with the ringing of experience orbs that spilled out as they took damage or died from the now more dangerous field of glowing magma blocks.

_[GirlGrunge walked into the danger zone due to [Dream Zombie].]_

_[Brookefield discovered the floor was lava.]_

_[SpooderPIG discovered the floor was lava.]_

He was now among the fighting factions, the blocks changing into TNT under his feet to keep him safe as he danced around and between the Avatars scrabbling to get their hands on him. He teased and taunted with his smile and brief touches of his hands over their weapons, magenta light flashing at the contact to turn enchanted swords and axes and picks into plain sticks or saplings. He laughed at the chaos, wild and freely moving to duck out of attempted grabs for his arms or cloak. Playfully, he grabbed a Cultist by their hands and spun around with them for a short dance before using the momentum to release them in a sweeping toss towards the rogue Recruits.

"What's going on?! What's _happening_?!"

"Hacks! **Hacks!** He's _hacking_ or something! No way he can use Sky Songs against **us**! We're the goddamn Sky Army! _Those **serve** us!_"

Dream smoothly pulled a bow out of a Recruit's hands, twirling away as he passed the light over it to add the Flame enchantment and an arrow. He drew the bowstring back and aimed for the ground, right at the swirls of TNT he left behind in his dance among the factions. With a wide smile, he released the arrow, giving a jaunty little wave as an Enderman blipped behind him, wrapped arms around him, and teleported out. A chain reaction of explosions tore through the hilltop, blasting a crater into it and flinging blocks and dropped items all over, the last of the warring factions vanishing in a cloud of pixels and orbs.

From the highway that cut through the extreme hills biome, Dream stood by the Enderman that had taken him to safety, both of them looking up at the flashes of light from the blasts that continued going off. It would die down eventually but the damage would be fairly severe. Dream twisted his mouth in distaste at having caused the destruction to his friend's property, tossing the stolen bow over the side of the road.

"It's fine. I'll just show up in one of his videos, look pretty for a couple minutes, and Fundy will make enough money to get it fixed by a professional Builder," he told himself dismissively and walked on down the road, heading back to the main trade village.

It wasn't long before a private message pinged him and he flicked it open, shaking his head to dismiss the Enderman and drop the Viral Wrath. Already the energy drain was making him feel like he was in need of a full day of sleep but he pushed through. He had to collect the materials listed on the blueprint after all.

_[Ph1LzA whispers to you: Dream, where are you? We're supposed to meet at the base of the hill! Is everything ok?]_

_[You whisper to Ph1LzA: Both squads are gone now. Severe damage to the hilltop. Say sorry to Fundy for me; will have him use me later for repair money. Going into hiding. Keep analyzing files to remove Herobrine.]_

Dream sent the message off, then closed the screen, resolutely ignoring any further messages as he walked on.

It was time to go to the End dimension. The Void was waiting for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Don't Mine At Night](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_XGxzMrq04) is a Sky Song that allows for mobs to be summoned in service of the singer. The mobs are immune to damage from daylight as long as the song continues, and wear identifying garments to tell them apart from normal mobs. Previously, Sky would sing this for extra assistance in the Viral Wars, and the mobs wore the royal blue cloaks of Sky Army. Viral Mode not required to be active.
> 
> I'm not sure if that summon creeper command actually works. Maybe I should test it later...
> 
> Dream's going to need so much therapy and reaffirming of self when this is all over because he's just been broken and immediately put himself back together all wrong just to defend himself against Herobrine's mindfuckery.


	25. 45. Promise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Techno, George, Sapnap, and BadBoyHalo rush to intercept Dream after learning of his plan to go into hiding. They reunite for a short time, where Dream agrees to let them join him in hiding, only to be separated by a trap set up by the Rogue Recruits. Sky's been overthrown by the Disillusioned, his last act of defiance and desperation to help Dream is to declare full on war within Minecraftia but it's not enough to stop Sapphira from preparing to hack into Dream's Core File.

45\. Promise

Techno studied his Compass, walking beside George as the smaller Avatar looked over a map in his hands. The little brunet had his lower lip between his teeth, nibbling worriedly at it as he tilted it slowly one way, then the other. Sapnap took point in front of them, looking around to keep an eye out for strange mobs and other potential dangers. BadBoyHalo followed up behind them, a chat window open and hovering over his palm as he read messages from Skeppy, a small smile on his face.

Several days had passed since Techno got a message from Ph1LzA about what happened at Fundy's lab. Fundy had managed to get copies of Dream's base Avatar files and was trying to figure out where Herobrine's coding was embedded and how best to extract them. There had been mentions of Dream self-rewriting the files for some reason other than rejecting Herobrine's attempts at taking over, but without Dream to view the changes live, there was no way of knowing what else was changing. Dream himself had wiped out the two squads that had hunted him down, told Ph1LzA that he was going to go into hiding, and then disappeared.

The Manhunt Compasses had swerved about wildly before locking on again, this time ticking southward so the group angled themselves to intercept, moving as quickly as they could. The loss of their horses had set them back quite a bit and annoyed Techno far more than having to heal from being knocked unconscious.

"If he went straight south from the extreme hills and we're moving towards him at this angle, the biome where we're likely to intersect with him at this pace is a desert," George muttered with a faint scowl. "Do we want to meet Dream there? Or, if we speed up some, we could maybe run into him in this savannah biome."

"How far away is the savannah?" Techno asked, leaning over a little to peek at the map himself. He blinked. " **Why** are we letting the colorblind one hold the map?!" he groused, snatching the parchment from George's hands and holding it up over his head. "That's not a savannah, George! That's a swamp! We're going to a swamp biome; you were going to have us overshoot because you can't tell green from yellow!"

"Ugh, fine, you can have the map then, I'll hold the Compass," George complained halfheartedly.

"How far, Techno? You're the one with the map now, we need directions!" Sapnap yelled back over his shoulder.

"If we run through the nights and not camp, we can get there in three days and cut Dream off. Really wish Wilbur hadn't told him we had more Compasses." Techno replied with a grunt, rolling up the map and putting it into his hotbar.

"We're going to use up a lot of food if we do that," Bad pointed out, flicking his hand to dismiss the chat screen.

"We'll just have to get more along the way and we can worry about resupplying once we get Dream back so I can kick his ass for ditching us," Sapnap growled under his breath, picking up the pace and leading the group into a run over the landscape.

\---

Three days of running and cutting down every passive mob in their way for fast food had the four Avatars storm the swamp biome and see their Compass needles swing around to point north; they had beaten Dream to the path he was taking and could now pull him back into their fold. George and Bad busied themselves with building up a campsite with their tents and wood planks for protective walls while Sapnap and Techno cleared the area in search of more food.

"Do I get one free punch in for him whacking me upside the head during my vulnerable moment of trust?" Techno asked drily, preparing farmland with a stone hoe and planting a row of potatoes.

"After I'm done kicking his ass, sure," Sapnap agreed and did a double take at the crops. "Why are you planting potatoes?! Plant wheat so we can just craft it into bread at the table! What are you _doing_?!" Techno waved his arms around at the growing crops.

"What did you _expect_ me to do when you asked me to plant food?! I'm the Potato King, it's kind of in the name what it is I'm gonna plant! Why are you so shocked by this?!" he ranted back and shook a potato at him. "Just pretend it's thick wheat! It's thick wheat, Sapnap!"

They bickered and argued as they showered the potatoes with bonemeal to harvest and replant several times, then headed to camp to shove the stack into George's furnace for cooking. The tents were set up, and a campfire was placed but the flames stifled. A single lantern was placed down and surrounded by trapdoors to limit the light; enough to see and hopefully not enough to be seen. Any tiny thing could alert Dream to their presence in the biome and send him bolting out of reach.

The baked potatoes were divided out equally, a few already eaten, as the sun sank lower in the sky. George kept his gaze focused on the Compass while Sapnap, Techno, and Bad laid out their plan of attack in halting Dream's speedrun. Rather than come at him from the same angle, they would spread out and approach from his sides and the front, closing in and cutting off any easy escape routes. Despite being a Speed Class himself, George elected to stay at the camp and prepare their healing supplies, just in case. A brewing stand was set up in his tent, extra potions brewing to make up for the cooldown timers of their Dungeons potions.

When the Compass needle began to twitch more noticeably, the three hunter Avatars nodded determinedly at each other and ran out into the swamp, using the shadows of the trees, vines, and ferns for cover as they took their places.

It didn't take long after they got into position. A flicker of lime green flashed in the distance, and an Eye of Ender flew ahead of it, shining bright as it sought out a stronghold hidden in the world. Sapnap's eyes widened, recognizing the item and immediately catching on to what Dream must have been planning; where better to hide from the factions warring in the Overworld and Nether than in the End dimension?

Footsteps sounded over the grass, swift and steady, and in no time Dream appeared, running across the swamp as the Eye dropped out of the air in range to be collected by the auto pickup. Sapnap crouched, ready to spring into action at the same time as the others likely would be doing. As the small figure neared them, the ravenet narrowed his gaze, focusing on his best friend. Something seemed.. off.

Dream ran within range and the three hidden Avatars all rushed out to grab hold of him, racing after the green-clad speedrunner. "Oh, _Dream~_!" Sapnap sang out tauntingly, pulling close beside him.

There was a strangely distant air to him, as if Dream were disconnected from the world around him and entirely consumed by the simple act of running. Even the usual taunting that would pull laughter and jokes from him didn't get any reaction out of him now. Now Sapnap was seriously worried, looking him over more closely. Dirty and torn clothes, didn't seem to have bothered repairing the skin, scratches and minor wounds peppering his limbs, his mask cracked all over, code damage to one arm that was left unattended; what the hell **happened** to him?

"Are you going to grab him or not?! He's not even trying to lure us into a trap! Or is this one of his psychological tricks?!" Techno yelled as he raced after them both, slowed by the weight of his fur-lined cape and jacket.

"Something's not right!" Sapnap called back and huffed. The sooner they got him to camp, the sooner they could find out, right? He gave one final push, leaping off the ground and opening his arms to grab the other Avatar.

It was too easy, worryingly easy. He tackled Dream and sent both of them tumbling across the ground, Sapnap's arms keeping him tucked close to his own body, one hand braced against the back of Dream's head to protect it from collisions. There was only a small amount of struggling and it didn't even last a few seconds. Grass ended and Sapnap let out a surprised yell as both Avatars impacted swamp water, splashing out broken lily pads and muck that had Techno dig in his heels to avoid while Bad jogged closer and held out his hands to them.

"Are you okay?! Did you get him?" the demonic Avatar asked as Sapnap moved one arm to hold Dream tighter against himself, reaching out the other to grab Bad's and get pulled out. "That was surprisingly easy to do. You're right, Sapnap, something is _really_ wrong here," Bad went on with a perplexed expression.

Techno carefully moved down to the edge of the swamp lake, helping Sapnap sit up as the ravenet rolled Dream over and held him up in his arms, tapping the mask to put it away and push the goggles up over wet blonde hair. Dream stared at him in a dazed confusion, as though unable to recognize him. A spark of fear ran through Sapnap and he scrambled to get to his feet, slipping one arm under Dream's legs and lifting him entirely from the ground.

"What's going on?" Techno asked in a more alarmed tone, watching the ravenet jog back towards the camp while carrying the speedrunner in his arms.

"Remember what you said, Techno?!" he called back over his shoulder, "He's stuck in his own head! We've gotta snap him out of it!"

Bad and Techno glanced at each other before giving chase, following after Sapnap as a baby chicken with red eyes fluttered and flapped after them.

\---

George wanted to ask questions; Sapnap could tell by the way his brows furrowed together and he clicked his teeth together slightly. But he kept them in as he wrapped Dream's right arm in bandages, a pair of sticks pressed on either side to keep the limb straight as it healed.

The campfire was lit and flickering, casting warmth over the campsite. Sapnap sat close to it to dry off from falling in the swamp, Dream pulled close to him, back to his chest, both to draw on the body heat as well as the campfire and to be supported while treated. His eyes were closed now, and it looked like he was asleep, but Sapnap knew it was just an illusion. The slightest noise or movement had Dream snap to alertness, or whatever disturbing form of alertness it was that made him look so distant and disconnected.

Techno was reading over messages in a chat screen, a baby chicken perched on his knee as he sat on the grass.

Every time Dream flinched at some odd noise, every time glassy green eyes looked _through_ him instead of **at** him, Sapnap had to squash a flare of anger towards whatever or whoever had done this to his best friend. Herobrine, Herobrine was to blame. Him and His Cultists and Sky Army. He wrapped arms around the small figure and rested his chin on Dream's head.

"Not sure when Dream got friends in high places, but I'm getting messages from Deadlox on what to do when Dream's like this," Techno finally said in a low voice. "There's also some messages meant for Dream; something went down in Sky Army and Deadlox lost contact with Sky. Which is quite surprising cuz first of all, those two were supposed to be in _exile_ , second of all, when did _they_ find out about Dream and meet up, and finally, how did Sky go missing too?!" Bad looked up from cooking a meal for the speedrunner to give him a long silent stare, and Techno swallowed, fidgeting slightly. "Oh, hey, look! Directions!" he said in exaggerated cheer, smiling over at the demonic Avatar. "First, we ask Dream to list off five things he can see."

George raised his head in surprise, eyes wide. "I _know_ that. That's part of the grounding tools for when someone's having an anxiety attack or something. My Player sent me info about that," he said in quiet realization. "Is Dream having one?" He finished tying off the bandage and sat back to get a clearer look at the green-clad Avatar. "Dream, tell us five things you can see around you."

Dream twitched, eyes fluttering open and looking around. He paused briefly on George's face, looked confused, then started speaking softly. "Oak trees, camping tents, my friends, campfire, a brewing stand," he listed.

"That's good. What's four things you can hear?" George asked encouragingly. Dream tilted his head, familiar look of concentration settling over his face.

"George's voice. Campfire crackling. Typing on a screen. Someone breathing behind me," he listed off and froze in place, eyes wide and going distant again. " **He's** behind me. I need to move, I need to move, why can't I _move_?"

Sapnap quickly moved his arm forward, holding it up within Dream's field of view. "Do you remember one of the earliest videos we did together after our Players changed our names and skins and your Player messed up and called mine 'Pandas'? You told me after they logged out of us that you still sometimes think of me as Pandas and that's probably why Clay messed up. Remember?" he asked, hoping his voice helped jostle Dream back out of whatever he was thinking.

"Right..," Dream agreed softly, looking at the black sleeve of Sapnap's shirt. "Pandas are cute and cool, and they wanted to try and keep the name somehow, and that's how you got Sapnap."

"Three things you can feel, Dream, you're doing really good," George said hopefully, a smile starting to grow on his face.

"Sapnap on my back. Bandages on my arm. Wet," Dream replied with a grimace, picking at his still damp clothes.

"We kinda fell in a lake cuz you wouldn't stop running, so that's your own damn fault," Sapnap muttered over his head.

_"Language!"_

"Okay, good, and two things you can smell?"

Dream sniffed at the air, closing his eyes to focus. "Wet grass. Bad's cooking," he said in a clearer tone.

"I'm making pork buns!" Bad said cheerfully and Techno pointed at him, scooting backwards over the grass.

"Now I **know** you're doing it on purpose, you maniac! Why are you along for this adventure when you could have gone home to Skeppy?!" he ranted, waving his arms around. Sapnap grinned, hearing the routine arguing make Dream chuckle a little.

"Good, good. And finally, one thing you taste," George told him just as Bad leaned over and held out a wooden bowl with two freshly made and toasted meat buns. Dream picked one up, blowing over it and tossing it lightly between his hands to spare his fingers, then took a bite, smiling brighter as the mischievous spark returned to his eyes.

"Pork buns that Bad made," he replied after swallowing. He sank back against Sapnap with a sigh of relief. "I don't know when I ran into you guys, but I'm pretty glad to see you again. Think you saved me from some pretty gnarly stuff that's been chasing me," he admitted and resumed eating.

"Yeah, you looked seriously out of it, man," Sapnap agreed, making a little pulling gesture towards Dream that opened his status screen for the team to see. "God, you're not looking good _at all_. Five hearts down on your Vanilla meter, thirty percent down on your heart gauge, your hunger gauge is down to three, and you have physical code damage on your right arm and leg?" George muttered under his breath at hearing that, turning to grab more bandages and pull up Dream's pant legs to find the damage and bind it. "What the hell _happened_ to you?"

Dream tilted his head back, blinking up at the Avatar looking down at him in concern, then just smiled. "A lotta stuff, but it's okay. I got it covered," he replied dismissively, resting a hand over his heart with a smug grin, "because I am a speedrunning _genius_. And super-lucky! How else would you have ended up in the right place for me to meet up with you guys?" Sapnap rolled his eyes as Bad draped a blanket around his shoulders and he pulled it tight enough to let him wrap the cloth around Dream as well, bundling him close and ignoring George's complaints of it getting in the way of his treating Dream's leg.

"Yeah, sure, whatever, super-lucky genius. Doesn't explain the damages, though," he pointed out.

"Eh, the usual; mobs, fall damage, stalker Cultists," Dream sighed grumpily and took a large bite out of the meat bun he held out of the blanket to keep it safe. George pushed his glasses up on top of his head, frowning in disapproval.

"You shouldn't be taking such big bites, Dream; you won't be able to swallow it and you might choke," he pointed out warningly as the blonde struggled to do just that. "See?"

"Yeah? But how else am I supposed to practice for my Gogy?" Dream asked sweetly, batting his eyes and then cracking up into wheezing laughter at the brunet's bright red face and horrified expression. The others around him joined in as George waved his hands before himself wildly.

_"Dream! Why do you **say** things like that?! Oh my **god**!"_

The fire flickered in the dead of night, thick clouds covered the sky as rain fell over the swamp, adding to the already wet and heavy feel of the biome. The tents provided decent cover from the weather, trapping whatever warmth was available to keep their occupants cozy and comfortable. As much as it pulled at Sapnap to drift off to sleep as well, he kept himself awake, sitting up and wrapped in the blanket Bad had passed to him, keeping Dream in place in a cage of his own limbs and the blanket.

Phantoms hissing overhead were all the evidence he needed to know that Dream hadn't slept for several days. Sapnap sighed, listening to the mobs in the distance while cradling the smaller Avatar, Dream's head resting against his shoulder as he finally slept. Had he been running straight through the nights? Or had something been giving him reason to not stop and rest?

"We'll go to the End together, okay? I promise, I'm gonna protect you and George. Speed Class Avatars could definitely use a Power Class bodyguard and that'll be me," Sapnap murmured.

During the morning, Techno gathered up more potatoes for baking while Bad reheated a few extra meat buns for breakfast. Dream sat near the campfire with him, cracked mask over his face as he ran a command in his screen to repair his skin, the clothing damage rippling away and color being restored in a sweep of data. The damage to his arm and leg remained, and he sat through a lecture from George over running for so long on a code-damaged leg, a fond smile on his face that looked weirdly out of place when paired with the fractured mask.

"What happened to your mask?" George finally asked, "Why did you run away from us? We're in this together, Dream; we promised to stand against the world and the factions together!"

"I just wanted you guys to be safe. These Recruits and Cultists and whatever are all coming after me and wrecking whoever's in their way and I just.. I couldn't..," Dream protested and shrugged helplessly as his words stuttered and crashed into one another, leaving him silent while the group watched and waited for him to pick out which ones he wanted to say. "I didn't want my friends to die in my name," Dream finally said clearly, hands clutching his bowl of meat buns tightly.

The campsite was quiet for a few moments, letting the words sink in. Then Technoblade chuffed, walking up to kneel by Dream and digging his knuckles gently into the top of his head. "You forget so easily. Remember my motto? It's my thing," the kingly Avatar told him with a smug smile. "Technoblade never dies. So there's no gettin' rid of me. And think of the views from footage of fighting against Sky Army AND Herobrine Cultists!"

"Looking after you and helping you get on your feet no matter how much you're knocked down is what we do as friends. Besides, we're doing this as **our** choice; nobody's sacrificing us cuz we're gonna win together!" BadBoyHalo pitched in cheerfully. "We're professional hunters! The End is **our** turf and nobody knows it better than us!"

"We're a team, yeah?" George added encouragingly. "Dream Team! That's us! And the Muffinteers! We're with you all the way!" He smiled widely, throwing the blonde a thumb's up. "So no more ditching us!"

"Okay, okay, fine, we'll go hide in the End together until Fundy figures out how to cure me," Dream laughed, waving a hand at them playfully. "It's you guys on my whitelist anyway. I'm sure things will turn out alright. I prom-." A chat screen popped open in front of Dream, interrupting him, and he blinked in surprise, reading the message.

_[Teleportation request sent from SkythekidRS.]_

"Huh," Dream muttered in confusion. A teleport request? What for? And why would Sky need one when he's the Sysop? Oh, right, it was in the book, something about how the Vaccine module inserted a new protection for Herobrine Anti-Virals to prevent them from just being teleported to another location without consent. "Hey, guys, Sky apparently wants to meet with me so I'm gonna check what he wants and then have him send me back here, okay?" he told the group, typing out the acceptance command.

"That's a hell of a flex there, Dream," Techno laughed drily, folding his arms over his chest. "Getting teleport commands right from the Commander of-." He halted suddenly, eyes wide. "Wait, no! _Don't accept that!_ It's **not** from him!" He exclaimed, reaching out to slap Dream's hand away from the screen.

The puzzled look on Dream's face was the last thing the group saw as he sent the response and vanished in front of them. Techno's hand grabbed at empty air and he grit his teeth, lashing the hand aside to open his own chat screen and type violently into it.

"What happened? What's going on?" Sapnap asked, getting to his feet as George and Bad did the same, snatching up whatever items they would need to carry on hand.

"It was in Deadlox's message last night!" Techno growled. "Something happened in Sky Army's ranks, like some sort of mutiny, and Sky was investigating and went missing! We already know Sky Army's been trying to get their hands on Dream; if they found out there's a connection between Sky and Dream, and they got their hands on Sky, they could have exploited that connection!"

"The Compass!" George exclaimed and pulled it out of his hot bar to see it spin and then point in an eastern direction. "They took him to Sky Capital! It's the only major location in that direction!"

"We're gonna have to-," Techno began and jerked away from the screen as several more popped open, alerts flashing on them. "Oh, **that** can't be a good sign."

\---

Dream touched down on stone brick after the teleport went through, flicking his hand to close the screen. "I'm here, Sky. What's-?" he began and registered the sight of the Sky Army Commander forced down on his knees, bound, gagged and with a pair of rogue Recruits holding swords to his neck, one of them holding his head up by the hair. In front of the captive Sky stood an Avatar in shades of blue, smiling beatifically at him as she adjusted her glasses and fluttered her fairy wings. In the same moment he spotted Sky's condition, Dream leaped backwards to put distance between them, only to be grabbed by several more Avatars that had surrounded his spawn location. He yelled and struggled, wincing as his injured arm was twisted behind his back and a trident slammed the back of one knee, bringing him to the ground.

"Oh, that really **was** much easier than I thought it'd be!" the fairy Avatar chirped with a clap of her hands. "Between drugging Seto for access to his labs and records, and calling on everyone who is sick and tired of how Sky Army's been running things in Minecraftia, staging an internal revolt was easy as pie! It's a bit of a shame we couldn't get Deadlox too, but that's alright. He won't come against us as long as we have Sky so he can stay locked up in the Sanctuary all he likes. Same as the rest of the Council." She stepped forward as Dream was pulled up to his feet and held in place for her to tap him on the nose. "You've been quite the problem, dear little Dream. We've lost a lot of time, resources, and Avatars in trying to capture you. But hearing Sky fled the Council during a meeting to find you himself? Well, that just made me all twitterpated~!" Her smile widened, crinkling her eyes closed as she tilted her head cutely, hands pressed together. "Because that gives a _weakness_! He'd do _anything_ to protect you, including follow suspicious paths into an obvious trap to prevent it from catching you; and _you'd_ happily jump into a trap to help a friend, just like you did here."

"Right, so now that you've **got** me, what's your plan for me?" Dream demanded, glaring at the fairy Avatar. "You can let Sky go since you got me. You don't need him anymore!"

"On the contrary, we need him to keep **you** under control while we have you loaded into the modifier," she replied brightly, gesturing towards something behind him. Dream looked over his shoulder, paling at the sight of the arrangement of screens and machines that looked just like the one Fundy had in his lab. "Must admit, I wasn't expecting you to look like this; from my agents' reports, your mask wasn't damaged like this. I wonder what is causing that. Corruption from Herobrine perhaps?" She hummed, rubbing her chin thoughtfully before shrugging and gesturing to direct the Recruits holding Dream back. "We'll find out once I get access to your files. Strap him in!"

Dream struggled, digging in his heels and crying out in pain when the trident smacked into his injured leg. Sky tried to move forward, muffled yells pushing through the cloth stuffed in his mouth, and wincing as the edges of iron swords bit into the collar of his armored clothes. The fairy Avatar made another gesture and the gag was removed. "Sapphira, **stop**! You're making a mistake! This isn't how Sky Army is supposed to do things!" he yelled at her, eyes blazing gold in anger.

"But it is how you and Seto ran things during the Viral Wars! Sacrifice one Avatar for the best results for all others? I'm just doing that again. A perfect Vaccine, to prevent any and all future Virus injections of any strain; my division will create that with the data we'll pull from Dream," she returned with a smile.

"If you want immunity like that for everyone, then put **me** in Dream's place!" Sky pleaded, gaze flicking to Dream then back to her, "Take the data from me! I promise, I won't fight, I'll give you access to my Core File, _anything you want from me_ , just let him go!"

"Your immunity is only for the base Herobrine Virus and the Squid Virus upgrade," Sapphira replied with a huff. "I'm talking about immunity against even your Sky Virus, to prevent future mutations that could invite Herobrine's rise to power again." Her eyebrow raised. "However, I do wonder why you're so protective of him; Dream's the vessel of Herobrine and you're the Anti-Virus. Why didn't you Purge him and defeat Herobrine while He was dormant?"

Sky opened his mouth, closed it with wince, eyes darting worriedly over at the green-clad Avatar being forced down onto a table under the needle-nosed device. Sapphira narrowed her eyes at him, following his gaze slowly to try and see what he saw. For a moment, nothing seemed to stand out.. until a shimmer of violet light rippled over the white-faced smiling circle that acted as a clasp for the lime green hood and cloak. Her eyes widened and a broad smile lit up her face.

"Ah! He's a _replacement_! For your precious Third! I see!" she exclaimed, giggling as Dream bit down on a Recruit's arm as his wrists, ankles and waist were tied down with chains, earning himself a punch to the face in retaliation. "A new Anti-Viral Avatar, and one trapping all of Herobrine within himself. How _fascinating_!" She turned away, heading to the console. "I wondered why you seemed so unconcerned with the theft of the artifacts; Dream's mask and cloak clasp are the new artifacts, and I suppose you'd want those to stay on him and will happily beha-."

"Sysop SkythekidRS officially declares open war against the Cultists and the Disillusioned! Enable war-time commands! Transfer Sysop command and rank to Deadlox and activate the Dead Army Override!" Sky barked out, multiple screens popping open in front of every Avatar in the lab. One of the guard Avatars reacted in a panic, slamming the butt of his sword against Sky's head and knocking him unconscious, the brunet slumping to the ground.

"Oh, that absolute **idiot**!" Sapphira huffed, planting her hands on her hips. "We're going to have to reinforce the lab. Take him to the cells in the back. He's going to be our leverage against those Sky Army Loyalists and the Council to hold back attack. What the hell was he thinking, transferring his Sysop power to that little coward in the Sanctuary?" She took her place at the console as the rogue Recruits finished tying down Dream and loaded a book and quill into the glass chamber of the machine. "Well, we still have experimentation to do to accomplish our goals." She smiled slowly at Dream's fearful expression, "Rejoice, you're going to make our _dreams_ come true."


	26. 25. Pain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Torturing Dream to get access to his Core File may not have been Sapphira's best idea, though no one had any idea just **how** powerful his Viral state can be...

25\. Pain

The startup sequence for the machine was just like the one in Fundy's lab from what little Dream could recall before sinking into the drugged sleep that made the experience mostly painless. With a hum, the machine activated and fired a beam of pale blue light down at him, piercing into his chest and making him jolt a bit in place. He risked looking over at Sapphira again, the Avatar checking over the multiple screens opening before her.

"We'll start with the base files for the Vaccine team to start investigating," she announced with a smile to a trio of Avatars sitting to one side of her. They had screens open, eager to work on whatever was found. Sapphira touched fingers to a screen, sending out a command to the modifier machine.

The beam brightened and Dream jerked in place again, cringing at the feeling of something crawling under his skin, pulling at his files and dragging them out to be seen. He twisted involuntarily, trying to get away from the beam and sending a shock of pain through the code-damaged arm and leg. Data bloomed into view on the multiple screens and the code researchers eagerly grabbed for them, scanning over them alongside an uninfected set of files for comparison, seeking out the differences to study.

"Seto's notes did say there would be some discomfort, but I assume he's talking about this initial access," Sapphira commented with a serene smile. "When we move to the next step, please express how much discomfort you feel from the process. Feedback is _much_ appreciated."

Dream kept his mouth pressed into a thin line, holding in whimpers as the crawling feeling remained. Did Fundy's machine also feel this way? He wouldn't know; he'd been unconscious and it was strange to wish for that again now. At least it'd be an escape from this unwanted access to his base files.

"Any indications so far that we can fabricate a perfect Vaccine from these files?" Sapphira asked her team.

"This is a lot of information to go through, but there's clear indicators of where Herobrine's code is installed," an Avatar in a teddy bear onesie reported. "Once we see enough of it, we should be able to identify the viral pattern and target it in the Vaccine."

"There's something else embedded in these files, though," a bee-themed Avatar added with an uncertain look on her face. "There's alterations in the script that the subject must have done to himself, but I can't make out why he made them."

"Flag those for further investigation later," Sapphira told them and reached out to another screen. "Next is downloading a copy of the Core File for the Artificial Avatar Project." She leaned over the console and smiled sweetly at Dream. "I'm going to need your access code for your Core File, Dream. Tell me what it is."

"Go suck a Creeper," Dream replied just as sweetly.

"It'd be _so_ much easier on you if you just cooperated," the fairy Avatar sighed in disappointment before perking back up with a dainty clap of her hands. "It's _okay~_! I've always wanted to experience up close what it must have been like to hack an Avatar's Core File just like Seto and Sky did!" And she sent out a command on the screen with a flourish.

The beam brightened further, a spiral of light winding down around the beam towards him. Dream twisted and struggled, straining against the chains. _'No, no, please, no!'_ All he could think of were the words of warning, the horror stories told by Techno and Sky, Sky's regret, but none of it could compare to living through it as the spiral reached him.

Pain.

Excruciating.

_Unending._

Dragon claws that dug into his flesh and slowly ripped him open from the inside.

He could hear screaming, loud and agonized and ringing through the lab. Was that from _him_?

His wrists and ankles were wet, slick, his muscles straining, spasming.

"First digit decoded," Sapphira announced. "You can stop it by just telling me what it is and give me access to your Core File."

He shook his head almost violently, back arching off the table as another layer of encryption was torn open slowly. He screamed, he sobbed, he begged for the hacking to stop, for him to be put to sleep to escape the pain.

It went on anyway, uncaring of his pleas.

\---

_[Teleported Deadlox to Technoblade.]_

Techno was still typing at his screen while the rest of the team broke down camp as quickly as possible when a russet-haired Avatar suddenly appeared before them. The kingly Avatar had twitched slightly at the message in his view and now raised eyes to the Anti-Viral standing before them. The rest of the group froze in place, watching warily while Sapnap carefully placed himself in front of George protectively.

"General Deadlox," Techno greeted flatly with a respectful dip of his head.

"Technoblade, the Blood God," the tiny Avatar returned with a nod before glancing over the other Avatars. "And, uh, you're.. you must be.. Dream's friends." He looked away, then back at them. "Dream was taken.. to the code research labs," he told them and looked at one hand, moving his fingers as if it were strange to him. "Sky was captured by the rogue Recruits calling themselves the Disillusioned and they, uh, they used a command block to send a teleport request linking Dream to Sky."

"That would make the request look like it legitimately came from Sky, since no one else can use teleport commands and the target name is someone he trusts," George realized, stepping forward from behind Sapnap to give him a steady look. "But _you_ teleported just now." Deadlox nodded.

"You got an alert on your chat screens, right? Sky declared war to enable war-time commands, then transferred his rank and power to me and activated the Dead Army to absorb what remains of Sky Army," he explained and sighed, shaking his head. "As of right now? Sky Army doesn't exist anymore and the crest is under Dead Army control. I'm here to help you get your asses to Sky Capital so we can rescue Dream and Sky before the Disillusioned fuck everything up royally for us."

"Language," Bad piped up in a soft tone. Deadlox stared at him for a moment, then looked back at the group as a whole.

"You're in, right? Cuz, like, this is some serious business and Sky said we're fucked if we lose Dream," he summed up.

_"Language."_

"Get us into the capital," Sapnap spoke up, stepping forward with his shield and Highland Axe in hand, "and those Disillusioned are gonna regret messing with the Dream Team." George and Bad nodded with him as Techno moved to stand beside them. Deadlox flicked open a screen.

"I'm teleporting you to a safe location over the capital to prepare for the rescue. It's Sky Hub Orbital Sanctuary; there's beds for respawning and supplies," he told them, tapping out the command line. "Once I've sent all of you there, I'll meet you and direct you to where you need to go. What are your names?"

"I'm Sapnap, this is GeorgeNotFound, and he's BadBoyHalo," Sapnap replied, gesturing to each Avatar. Deadlox nodded again and tapped at the screen. Techno vanished from the group, and as the russet-haired Avatar went on editing and entering the command, each of the other members of the group disappeared, teleported away from the swamp. Deadlox was last to leave, and all that remained of their presence in the biome was a lone campfire that was doused by the rain.

\---

Another splash potion of regeneration was thrown down to heal him. Dream twitched, gurgling in his throat before turning his head aside to spit out the mouthful of blood that had filled his mouth and nose, coughing and gagging on the heavy metal scent.

A flicker of memory. Screaming. Tongue bitten. Demands for healing to keep him alive.

Pain.

He screamed, struggling weakly as another layer of encryption was torn open and away. When would it all **end**?

He just wanted it all to _stop_.

"That's the third digit," Sapphira murmured, studying her screen and adjusting her glasses. "I'm tempted to guess the last one, but if it's wrong we'll just end up right back to this point again so may as well let the decryption tool break through." She looked over at her team. "How are we on file analysis?"

"We're trying to test possible Vaccine strings against specific base files that have Herobrine encoded to them, but they're not having any effect," the teddy bear Avatar replied in frustration, fingers flying over the keyboard on the screen. "We're still looking for the correct pattern to target. There must be some files hidden where we can't reach, or the files the subject altered are confusing the Vaccine samples."

"If we could get a portion of Sky's immunity code, it might give us an idea of what to look for in the test subject as a pattern," the bee-themed Avatar chipped in, one hand raised for attention.

"Well, I _suppose_ since it's for science we can do that," Sapphira sighed, stretching her arms over her head. "Ugh, standing here and waiting for the decryption to be done is such a pain! My feet are suffering, where's my chair?" She flapped a hand at a few rogue Recruits standing guard around Dream. "Some of you go and fetch Sky back from his cell, the rest move the modifier machine from the Artificial Avatar Project room to here so we can do side by side comparisons easier." She managed to grab a chair and pull it up to sit in. "Oh! And if you see Schnooky, tell her it's her own fault for forgetting her earplugs. I swear, if she can't handle screaming then she's in the wrong field of research..."

His fingernails dug into his palms, leaving bloody crescents through the fabric of his gloves as he thrashed and howled in pain and growing anger, resentment and bitterness churning through him, a raging fire chasing the agony of data being ripped apart bit by bit.

Something cracked.

Dream shrieked, an ear-splitting scream that filled the large space of the lab before he collapsed back against the table, shuddering and gasping. The sphere of softly glowing white light rose from his body, loops of Galactic Standard writing rotating slowly around it.

"Oh, _finally_ , the last digit's been decrypted! Huh? 'Clay'? Oh my god, are all Youtuber Avatars stupid? An access code to your Core File is supposed to be something that represents that which is the most precious thing to you, the reason for your existence and the meaning of your life, and this dumb blonde picked a shitty block you dig out of the river bed, _oh my god_ , I need a drink, I can't even," Sapphira ranted in exasperation. "Someone start copying it, I'll be back once I get some tea for my nerves, oh my god, these last couple of hours have been **hell** for me."

The spiral of light reversed, pulling from the Core File as the glass chamber glowed, script rapidly being etched into the pages of the book via the quill. Dream fell still, breathing labored and feeling drained of all strength. He felt shaky, whimpering in protest as he watched the copy being made. What was going to be done to it? He faintly remembered something about an Artificial Avatar, whatever that meant.

There was scraping nearby and Dream managed to look aside at Sky being led back into the lab, arms bound behind his back and flanked by several Disillusioned guards with swords and spears at the ready. The brunet was scowling until he caught sight of the blonde and his expression fell into one of dismay. He probably looked a mess; Dream could see large patches of dried blood where his wrists were chained down and his gloves weren't protection enough to keep the metal from injuring him, skin tender and raw from his most recent forced healing, and the side of his face felt tacky from earlier, both from spitting out the mouthful of red and from slamming the back of his head against the table in a desperate attempt to knock himself out that only got him to bite his tongue by mistake.

The doors opened and Sapphira returned to the lab, a cup of tea in her hand that she sipped from. Following her in was Setosorcerer, looking frustrated as he spoke towards the fairy Avatar. " _-completely_ unnecessary to do and we need to assist with the war effort-!" he cut himself off in shock, staring at Sky being held captive across the lab. "What is this?! Sapphira, what are you _doing_?! I **never** agreed to this when I set up that command block for you to lure in Dream! Let him go!" he snapped at the other Avatar. She only held up a finger to him as she took another sip of her tea and sighed contentedly.

"Seto, you've lost your _touch~_. We're doing this for the good of **all** Avatars, not just **one**. You and your silly need to protect Sky above all else. He's not some sort of god!" she cooed at him with a smile and flapped her hand at him, moving towards the console. "We're still downloading Dream's Core File, but then we're going to look into Sky's base files too. The research team needs to see how his immunity is coded so they can reverse engineer Herobrine's pattern from it and target it in Dream's files."

"Well, now I know who to blame for setting up that command block to impersonate me and take advantage of Dream's trust in me," Sky snarked drily and shook his head. "God, Seto, why can't you let go of me? We both did horrible things in that war; I regret them, but it's not healthy for you to keep following that same path like it'll help you outrun your part in them."

"I just wanted to keep you safe," the sorcerer told him miserably. "I don't have a lot of friends, and I didn't want to lose you to anything, especially that Virus. ..I'm sorry. My fear got us all into this."

"We're going to have a long talk about this later," Sky returned firmly, " _if_ we pull through."

"Yes, yes, kiss and make up later," Sapphira muttered, mimicking talking with one hand before leaning over the console. " _Excuse me~!_ **Where** is the other modifier? I told you to bring it here so we could put Sky into it and run side by side comparisons!" she called out to the other rogue Recruits.

"It was too big to move! And we don't know how to disassemble it without breaking something!" they protested, shrugging helplessly.

"Pain, you put me through so much pain, right here," she returned, putting her hand over her heart before taking another sip of tea. "Honestly, we're working _super_ hard to save Minecraftia; the least you can do is read the instruction manual on how to take apart one piece of equipment."

\---

Sapnap looked around in awe alongside George, Bad, and Techno, staring at the numerous blocks of gold, quartz, lapis, obsidian, and bedrock, among many other blocks, that made up the massive build that was Sky Hub Orbital Sanctuary. Deadlox walked down a hallway, leading them along, as he searched for a specific room.

"This place looks more like a massive weapon of war rather than a sanctuary," George commented.

"Uh, yeah, it's that too," Deadlox agreed absently, pushing open a door and gesturing for them to follow him in. "During the final days of the war, the villagers and injured Avatars got moved to the bedrock shelter in the outer chambers up top. Everything combat related is in the lower chambers, and the main cannon is powered in the center of the construct and fires out of the bottom and top, bottom for attack, top to disperse the immunizing aura throughout Minecraftia." He stopped by one of the many rows of beds, watching as the group each tapped one to set a spawn point. "That's why this place is also known as Sky Hub Orbital Fortress. It's pretty much impenetrable. Got spawn set? Okay, let's get pots and totems for you guys."

The armory was opened for them to explore and arm themselves, hundreds of chests full of weapons, arrows, potions, Enchanted Golden Apples, and rows of armor stands displaying shimmering diamond armor. Techno stared at the wealth for a long second before turning to Deadlox, dropping to one knee and holding the tiny Avatar's hand in his own.

"Marry me. We'll split the bloodshed and the profits 60-40," he praised. Deadlox's face reddened despite his expression never changing from apathetic-looking.

"Ah, well, there's this.. y'know? Skylox? It's a joke, see.. Techlox doesn't roll the same, might not get the clicks," he stammered out and the kingly Avatar sighed, rising back to full height again.

"So true. Such a shame. But if you're ever looking to offload some of your quality merch here, let Technoblade be the first name you think of," he said with a grin and a wink. Sapnap opened a chest of totems and grabbed a handful.

"Techno, stop flirting with the guy who's got all the weapons and take a totem," he called out drily, flinging one at the pink-haired Avatar. "George, you too. Dream will kick my ass if you get taken out in a fight." Sapnap pitched a totem towards the brunet, watching him until George looped the golden item's string around his neck, letting it rest beside the shimmering Soul Healer charm. Another was tossed Bad's way and the demonic Avatar jumped to snatch it out of the air, waving a hand in thanks before sorting through the selection of potions to pocket.

"Do you have any netherite? Our Dungeons armor and weapons are good enough for now, but I could use an upgraded sword and diamond isn't strong enough anymore," George asked, walking up to Deadlox and showing him his iron sword. The russet-haired avatar ran a hand over the blade and hummed, gesturing for George to follow him. He swept fingers aside, opening a command screen and typing out a line quickly before switching to his inventory. George blinked, seeing the multiple tabs and pages full of items. "Oh yeah, since Sky transferred his power to you, you have Creative Mode now," he realized.

"There's a lot of new things and I haven't had a chance to look into them all," Deadlox replied, pulling a diamond sword from one of the displays and holding it out to George. "This one's fully enchanted for damage. Does netherite compare?"

"Diamond can be upgraded to netherite, just use a netherite ingot and a smithing table," the brunet explained. Deadlox gave him a steady look, then turned to the inventory window, searching out the items and tossing them to him. "Here, look, I'll show you." George placed down the table, then set the sword and ingot down in their respective positions in the interface before tapping the final result. The screen closed, leaving the upgraded enchanted netherite sword in shimmering deep purple color floating over the table. "Netherite gear doesn't burn and floats on top of lava, it's stronger than diamond and enchants much better too," George told the other Avatar with a grin as Deadlox took up the blade and checked it.

"Cool. Might take some time to upgrade our supplies here then, provided we all don't get killed," he said and held the sword back out to him. "You got arrows for your bow?" George nodded, flicking open his inventory to make sure of it and double checking that his new favorite crossbow, the Azure Seeker, was loaded and in his hotbar. "Good. We need to hurry and get to the lab," Deadlox told the group, moving back to the entrance of the armory.

"Why? What's going on? Are they doing something to Dream?" Bad asked worriedly, rushing to join the Avatars gathering in front of Deadlox.

The Dead Army General passed a hand over his eyes, then opened them, looking past the group as the once scarlet iris shone a deep blue color. "Dream had a baby chicken vanity pet from one of those new Dungeons items. I can see through its eyes as one of my Viral abilities," he explained. "That's how I knew to contact Technoblade and where Dream was taken, and I can see what's happening to him now." His face turned ashen, nervous sweat dampening his brow. "The Disillusioned hacked into Dream's Core File and stole a copy of it; he's in very bad shape right now, but there's also a pretty good chance he's gonna go into a Viral Mode and we do **not** need that happening." He raised his hands to the command screen opening before him. "I'm going to teleport you to the lab's coordinates; get Dream and Sky out of there!"

The team readied themselves for battle, braced for action, but just as Deadlox pressed fingers to the screen to type..

..the sound of an End Portal activating thundered throughout Minecraftia..

..followed by the scream of a Wither being summoned.

And a new chat announcement line appeared on everyone's screens.

\---

Sapphira collected the small white smiling blob figure with the lime green cloak and hood from within the glass chamber of the machine, cooing at it with a smile. "Oh, look how cute you are! You're going to make a wonderful test subject for the Artificial Avatar Project!" she crooned and began walking away. "I'm going to go install this! Research Team B, swap Dream out for Sky and fire up the machine again! I want those comparative analysis reports on my desk by dinner time~!"

As she left, Seto tried to grab for the nearest rogue Recruit's weapon, halting only when another one crossed a pair of shining daggers over Sky's neck and growled up at him. "Don't move, or I slit his throat!" she barked out as Sky cringed and tried to pull away from the blades. "His respawn point is set in our holding cell and you won't be able to reach him to stop him from getting killed again, and at that point he won't have the levels to pay for resurrection!" Seto backed away with a frustrated huff, raising his arms in surrender.

"Alright, time to switch out prisoners," another guard reminded them and stepped forward to unchain Dream from the table, freezing when the blonde began to laugh, low and cold, the eyes of the fractured mask flashing magenta in color. Sky's eyes widened, unable to move, unable to help. Seto looked on, uncertain as to what was happening.

"Is that it? Just take what you want from me and throw me aside?" Dream asked and laughed again, pained wheezes turning into coughing as he shifted in place, fingertips brushing over the chains where he could reach. "You weren't _allowed_ to use me. You stole me from my friends, you tortured me, you violated my trust and friendship with Sky, and you think you get to just _walk away_ with a pat on the back?" Magenta light rippled over the chains where they touched Dream's body and they shriveled into pieces of string that he snapped free from easily, sitting up from the table. The mask glared at them through the web of stress fractures, then collapsed inward, drawn back to become the goggles that covered Dream's eyes. He lifted bloodstained hands to them, pushed the goggles to the top of his head, then opened his eyes to take in the room around him. The eerie colored light shone from them, replacing the green they had been before, and a wide smile broke out over his face.

"You thought I was just some **nobody** you could manipulate and abuse?" he cackled and shook his head, "You **idiots**.. I'm a _Viral sensation_!" He threw his arms up, showman style, as his eyes were completely consumed by the magenta color. Wither Skeletons burst up from below the stone bricks, grabbing at startled rogue Recruits and throwing them aside, then pulling out swords and rushing in to attack. Endermen teleported in, grabbing at Dream, Sky, and Seto before blipping out of the lab.

Sky and Seto stumbled onto the ground when the Endermen dropped them off and blipped away, making them among the first to look at their surroundings as the sound of an End Portal activating blasted through the air.

The bright sunny sky flickered wildly before shattering into massive shards that fell to reveal the static Void of the End dimension, spreading out as far as it could before a glimmering shield formed to block it off, curving into a dome wall in the distance. The ground under people's feet glitched and flickered, becoming the milk white End stone from the dimension. Massive pillars of obsidian shot up around the city, sending Avatars running in screams of panic, the population of Sky Capital caught off guard by the alarming changes happening around them. The pillars rose high overhead, sparks of light appearing on each one that then fired beams of light towards a single point floating high over the city, midway between them and Sky Hub Orbital Sanctuary, the massive build resting just within the dome.

"What's going on?!" Seto cried out in horror, quickly untying Sky and helping the brunet to his feet. Sky raised a hand to his eyes, shielding them from the fierce wind blowing through the city as the scream of a newly summoned Wither sounded out, ringing over the terrified voices of the population as they discovered they couldn't escape the wall around Sky Capital.

"Something we weren't ready for," Sky returned in despair, cape whipping wildly in the wind, "Feral Viral Wrath."

High over the city, drifting slowly on a looping Slow Falling effect, Dream laughed and spread his arms out to encompass the world below him. Over both shoulders floated a copy of his signature mask, their eyes wide and gleaming magenta, the masks twitching to face in many directions in constant seeking motion. The beams from the End Crystals on the obsidian pillars connected to him at frequent intervals, and the damages to his body reversed bit by bit with each pass until he was fully healed.

"Come on, everybody! My life is just a **game** to you, **isn't** it?! You wanted to play with it so badly! Then let's **play**!" the speedrunner declared madly, _"Let's have some fun in Minecraft!"_

_[ **The End** has entered **The Overworld**.]_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The dome is Minecraftia's doing, halting the spread of the End to protect itself otherwise it'd just completely take over the Overworld. It's restrained to a 40 chunk radius instead.
> 
> Feral Viral Wrath Dream is nicknamed in notes as 'Wither Dragon Dream'.


	27. 12. Laugh

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sky Capital is under attack by Feral Viral Wrath Dream, who is too deep into the state to recognize friend from foe and laying waste to anything living he catches above ground. With the help of SkythekidRS, Deadlox, and Setosorcerer, the rest of the Dream Team and friends begin a plan to take Dream down.

12\. Laugh

Sky Capital stood relatively in one piece as Avatars and villagers scrambled for cover, seeking out underground shelters. Magenta-eyed Endermen and Wither Skeletons wandered the streets, attacking anything and anyone that wasn't one of them. In the early minutes of the End appearing in the Overworld, gleaming magenta bolts of energy fired from above, hitting several Avatars and villagers. Those who weren't armored heavily died to the bursts, and those who survived suffered from a wither effect.

A few brave Avatars headed out to fight back against whatever it was that brought this horror to the city. Arrows were fired at them, exploding into bursts of damaging particles that lingered over the surface of impact. The Avatars expected the Ender Dragon and instead got a laughing Avatar dressed in lime green who swooped down at them and pressed hands to their armor as he drew himself close to each one, whispering into their ears.

"You lost the game."

All their best enchanted armor and gear suddenly flickered and glitched, becoming useless leather or wood, and the magenta-eyed Avatar would leap back up into the air with a Jump Boost effect, letting a crowd of Endermen and Wither Skeletons swarm in and slaughter the groups. Laughter trailed after him as he left behind the ringing of spilled experience orbs.

From the top of Sky Tower Alpha, Sky, Seto, Deadlox and Dream's friends all stood within the artifact display chamber, looking out the windows at the Avatar circling the city, a lime green streak of color terrorizing the capital. The two groups had met at one of the only other defended structures in the city with a better view of the situation; Sky Hub was too far high and the Sky Army Headquarters was under constant attack from the Endermen and Wither Skeletons smashing themselves against the walls, tearing blocks out and crawling in to go after whoever was left in there. The Council had evacuated to the floating fortress and were busily trying to summon the Recruits still loyal to Sky, calling them back to the capital from their scattered posts at Nether Portals all throughout the Sky Territories.

"So this is the full power of a Feral Viral Wrath?" Deadlox asked, a mildly impressed tone to his voice. He watched Dream 'fly' through the Void sky from where he leaned against the side of the balcony, arms folded over his chest. "Is this strength because he has all of Herobrine's code boosting the Dream Virus?"

"Seems like it," Sky sighed, sitting on a gold block while Seto wrapped his sword arm in bandages with sticks for splints and then tied it across the brunet's chest in a sling. "I gave him some training in sustaining the Controlled form, but the Disillusioned started doing some hinky shit that I got reports about so I had to go back and didn't give him any one on one training about the Feral mode."

"Language," BadBoyHalo muttered, looking up at the Void as he gripped his own weapon, the Battlestaff of Terror. "Dream..."

"How do we snap Dream out of this? I don't think that anxiety list of questions thing is gonna do us much good now," Sapnap asked as he stepped forward, glaring down at Sky and Seto. "You guys made this mess, so you better help us clean it up and get our friend back!"

Sky stood up and nodded even as Seto jumped up after him. "No! You can't go out there and fight!" he protested. The brunet rolled his eyes, opening his mouth to argue but the sorcerer shook his head, hands planted on his hips. "Absolutely not! Your tremors are back!" he declared, and gestured at the bound arm, drawing everyone's attention to it.

Sapnap blinked, watching the brunet's hand and arm tremble visibly despite all the binding and bandaging. Had that been happening for a while and no one noticed? Sky gripped at the trembling hand, both to still it and hide it from view, an irritated expression on his face. "Did you get hurt in that lab?" the ravenet asked him in concern.

"It's an old injury that healed but the memories tied to it still cause it to act up," Deadlox called out. "The kinda shit constant pain and torture does to someone, so when we get Dream back, invest in some therapy for the guy or you're gonna have to deal with him acting like a dipshit sometimes like Sky does." Bad squawked out _'Language!'_ from the window before resuming looking out at the Void again.

"I've got Viral Rage, I can fight with that. Maybe use it to hold Dream down long enough for you guys to calm him down. There's only a few ways to get him out of a Feral state; calm him, defeat him, wait for him to run out of energy, or kill him," Sky told the group, holding his arm still. "You guys are close to him, his best friends, so if I can keep him from moving, you can get the time you need to talk him back to his senses. I managed to hold him down during training so it should be easy."

"We should bring in reinforcements," Techno suggested, tapping away at his chat screen. "I've already sent out teleport invites. Should be showing up any second now..."

_[Teleported Ph1LzA to Technoblade.]_

_[Teleported WilburSoot to Technoblade.]_

_[Teleported ItsFundy to Technoblade.]_

Three more Avatars dropped into the display room, clutching their own weapons and items on hand, Ph1LzA's wings flaring out before folding back down into the cloak form. Fundy and Wilbur waved at everyone in greeting as the three approached the group. George caught them up on the situation and went back to looking out of the windows, one hand curled over the Soul Healer charm. Ph1LzA rubbed his head.

"Well, that's right fuckin' scuffed," he summed up as Bad chimed in as always. "If you need him knocked out of the air, I can fly after him and kick him down into Sky's range." Techno tossed him his Totem of Undying and Ph1LzA grabbed it out of the air, tying the cord to one of his wristbands bearing a Hardcore Mode heart icon.

"There's a problem with that," George suddenly said, walking further out onto the balcony and peering up at the lime green Avatar floating over the capital, bolts of magenta firing from him at whatever was shot up at him from the ground. "If you shift your focus a little, you'll see something at the top of your vision." The others joined him and looked up at Dream, shifting the focus of their eyes.

 _"Oh,"_ Sky breathed out, tightening his grip on his wrist.

"I don't think it's normal in Minecraftia for Avatars to have boss bars, Phil, that seems rather unfair," Wilbur commented inanely, adjusting his beanie with a sleepy-eyed look.

Sapnap squinted at the bar, studying Dream's name hovering over the length of magenta color. "Wither Dragon Dream, huh? Always gotta be so dramatic," he muttered and shrugged before turning to the group and clapping his hands for attention. "Okay, so Dream's a boss mob or something now. We need to haul his dump truck butt down to the ground so we can pile on him and calm him down." He shrugged. "Let's treat this like a speedrun! Dream wants to fly around up there like an Ender Dragon? Then we take out the crystals and fire arrows after him until he gets low to the ground and Sky can grab him."

"You make it sound like a walk in the park," Seto remarked incredulously, one eyebrow rising at the nonchalant planning.

"Oh, _yeah_ , we do this sort of thing all the time," Bad remarked with a bright smile. "We're professional Dream Hunters. And speedruns that our Players do teach us the patterns and methods that are best for taking down the Ender Dragon fast and easy."

"Then let me give you something that'll make communicating in the field easier," Deadlox remarked, swiping open the inventory screen and pulling out several small golden discs that resembled very tiny buttons. He held the pile of them out in the palm of his hand towards the group. "During the Viral Wars, we kept contact over distance using Skype code injected into ourselves to create our own private calls. These were created by Minecraftia to do the same thing for anyone who takes them into their body. They'll hook onto any communication code your Players have used and create a voice chat system here for you." The other Avatars reached in to pick out a disc. "Set up who gets to be in the voice call by creating a party. That's a war-time command that's been unlocked."

The group swallowed the tiny golden discs, wincing slightly as new code settled in with their base files. Sapnap opened a command screen and searched for the party help to learn the commands and set up a group. Invites were sent to everyone and accepted.

"Okay, now that we've got a voice call of our own, huddle up," Sapnap said with a grin, gesturing for the Avatars to gather close, "here's the plan..."

\---

Dream floated through the sky, laughing as he reveled in the wind passing over him, his cloak spread in a mockery of wings that amused him. Any time he felt as though his laughter could calm down something would move and catch the attention of his sentry masks, which would have them fire a bolt at whatever moved and set him off into another wheezing fit of giggles that had him descend faster than normal. The whole situation, being trapped behind walls in the capital that had been partially demolished by the pillars, was both hilarious and infuriating.

He wasn't sure which to feel more, so he felt both equally.

His feet touched down on the top of one pillar to give him something to push off from and regain height with his Jump Boost. In the center of the pillar's surface was the glimmering End Crystal, its beam connecting to Dream to maintain a steady stream of regeneration. He spared it a glance before kicking off, blinking as one of the sentry masks twitched aside and fired a bolt of energy from its mouth, blasting an arrow that aimed for the crystal.

"How'd you fucking **miss**? That's a shot you've done hundreds of times before!" Ph1LzA's voice rang out from behind a wall of End stone on top of a nearby building, Bad immediately scolding him after.

"The Ender Dragon doesn't have projectile tracking heads! That's a Wither thing!" Fundy's voice yelled back in frustration.

Dream turned and pulled out the Twin Bow, loading an arrow into it and altering its code to apply a Dragon's Breath attack onto it. He pulled back on the bowstring as the Twin Bow applied its ability and doubled the arrow, and aimed for the wall, waiting. When a pair of heads poked out to look at the situation, he released, firing the arrows directly at them.

Fundy shrieked as he was yanked down by Ph1LzA, the two ducking behind their shelter as the arrows slammed into the top of the wall and spread the lingering particles over them. "He's shooting at us! He actually _**shot** at us_! Phil! Phil, what do we do?!"

"What do you **mean** , 'what do we do'?! Fucking pearl, Fundy! Move it!" Two pearls were thrown a short distance away, and Dream just grinned wider as the sentry masks fired on them, destroying the teleport path. " _Oh my fucking.._ Sapnap! That little shit fires on anything that moves! We need more entities!"

Dream floated backwards, loading another arrow into the bow as the masks twitched around in search of more targets.

More targets did come; a small cloud of arrows fired at another End Crystal from different spots around the pillar, from varying rooftops and the ground. Dream turned in place, the masks firing off bolts that took out two of the arrows, and fired the Dragon's Breath arrows at the origin of one of them, searching out the source of all the projectiles. With more arrows flying upward than he could counter, one of them struck the Crystal and detonated it. Dream flinched and flew backwards from the shockwave, shaking his head to clear it. Ph1LzA and Fundy took that moment to escape their perch, running for another Crystal to fire on as Bad chased after them.

Sapnap and George ran side by side over the roofs of the shops and houses, pausing to fire more arrows up at the lime green Avatar and draw the attention of the sentry masks.

"Wilbur, Techno, Deadlox, fire your arrows at any other End Crystal! Distract those masks of his so Bad, Phil and Fundy can get to position to set up a TNT cannon!" Sapnap called out, the voice call screen floating alongside him as he ran. "Sky, Seto, get to position! As soon as he gets close to the ground, you're in charge of grabbing on with whatever powers you have to hold him in place for us!"

"I can't switch to Viral mode until you bring him close for me to grab him. He'll sense me as soon as I trigger it since we're both Herobrine Anti-Virals and I do **not** want what he's got being thrown at me," Sky replied drily, his name flashing an icon beside it in the screen as an indicator of speech.

A shower of arrows arced through the air, aiming for two other Crystals. The masks fired on them, Dream following with a pair of arrows of his own, but one of the Crystals took a hit and exploded, pushing the cloaked Avatar backwards in the air. Beams from another pair of Crystals shone out and connected to him as he glided past, healing him as Dream moved to find a safe surface to push off from.

"Doing good! That's two Crystals down, eight more to go!" Sapnap praised, firing an arrow towards Dream then quickly throwing an Ender Pearl alongside George to get to another angle of attack. "Phil, Bad, Fundy, how's the cannon coming?"

"I'm trying to keep these Endermen and Wither Skeletons off us so Fundy can put it together! We're on one of the cleared pillars but these fucking mobs keep climbing up here!" Ph1LzA complained.

"Gah! Language!" Bad exclaimed in frustration. "Sapnap, we're doing our best but I don't know how long I can keep defending Fundy and Phil; my shield durability is running low fast! There's a lot of mobs and Dream keeps fudging _shooting_ at us with those arrows that leave linger effects all over the place!"

"Techno, go take over for Philza! Phil, we're gonna keep shooting at Dream to get his attention; try attacking the other End Crystals from the air since you can fly!" George ordered, glancing at the list of names in his own call screen while running to a new position.

Laughter filled the air as Dream spun and glided around, making passes near the End Crystals to regenerate any damage inflicted by the few arrows that got past his sentry masks and hit him. As he flew by another End Crystal, its beam latched onto him, a golden arrow zipped up from outside the circle of pillars to hit it. The explosion rippled through the beam, dropping a chunk of health from the boss bar floating in everyone's vision as Dream cried out and fell from the air.

"Wait, wait! Who did that? Who fired that arrow?" Sky called out in alarm, watching the lime green Avatar tumble briefly before recovering and gliding on to find a place to kick off from again. "Are there more Avatars in the city that are trying to fight?! Weren't they hiding in the underground shelters?!" From their place on the roof of a bank in the center of the ring of pillars, the brunet sought out the origin of the arrow, tracing it back to a group of Recruits running across rooftops to reach them.

Dream pushed off from the side of a pillar, soaring up higher as the sentry masks fired bolts down at the blue-caped Avatars firing numerous arrows after him. He wobbled in the air as several got past the anti-projectile measures to puncture his body. Laughter still drifted behind him, broken and almost hysterical. A beam from an End Crystal touched onto him, held fast, and brushed aside the arrows, healing the damage slowly as he passed by.

"TNT cannon ready, but we need those Crystals gone and for Dream to be in range for this to work!" Fundy called out, watching Techno make short work of the mobs that had reached the pillar. With the area secured, the kingly Avatar jogged up to join him and Bad at the cannon, one hand reaching out to press on the zoom button of a screen so he could see Ph1LzA flying overhead. "Phil, hurry up with the Crystals!"

"Keep those entities coming! He's fucking shooting at me when there's nothing else in the air!" the winged Avatar yelled back, banking hard to dodge a bolt of energy before lifting a crossbow and aiming for a Crystal. He circled the pillar, waiting to fire until a stream of arrows poured into the air from Wilbur, Deadlox, and the Recruits still rushing to join them despite not knowing their plan. Bolts from the masks fired back and Dream shot the twin arrows of Dragon's Breath at the Recruits in retaliation. "My turn!" Ph1LzA laughed, shooting the Crystal and riding the shockwave out of range of another bolt, soaring to the next Crystal.

This was repeated to varying degrees of success; projectiles such as arrows and fireworks to even tridents were thrown and fired at Dream, some with the intent to distract, some with the intent to deal damage. Seto assisted where he could, using his magic to extend the reach of some projectiles when not slamming mobs away from Sky, keeping the Butter King shielded.

Several more End Crystals were destroyed and the health bar display for Dream dropped further, growing close to the halfway mark and struggling to recover with fewer Crystals still standing to connect to him. He kept gliding over the Avatars running around below on the rooftops and ground, laughing as he fired Dragon's Breath Arrows at any figure that caught his eye. The Endermen and Wither Skeletons under his control were shrinking in number as they were also cut down but he couldn't find it in himself to care. Anger and resentment and frustration and the burning need to lash out at a world that kept trying to hurt him, kill him, destroy him in mind, body, and soul fueled the wrath that poured into his arrows and the bolts from the sentry masks, bubbled out of his mouth as laughter.

Even as he was shot at, arrows and tridents lancing pain and injury, he could only laugh in reaction, helplessly, hopelessly. At least he was in the End now - _or had the End come to him?_ \- and once all these irritating Avatars were killed and cast out, Dream could have the place to himself, to be alone, be left and forgotten. As he should be.

"I really don't like it when he laughs like that," George sighed, shoulders slumped behind a broken wall that Sapnap yanked him to for shelter. They'd narrowly dodged the Dragon's Breath Dream had fired on them; knowing that their best friend wouldn't recognize them in this feral state and experiencing being attacked without hesitation because of that lack of recognition were entirely different things. Both didn't make them feel good at all, though.

"If he's acting like an Ender Dragon, then Dream's gotta come down to the center eventually and Sky can grab him then," Sapnap said, putting on a confident smile for the smaller Avatar's sake. "Then we can tackle his stupid butt and snap him out of this!" He looked to the call screen, gesturing to unmute himself. "How many Crystals are left?"

"Philza's on the last one, just gotta- _PHILZAAA_!" Techno cut himself off with a terrified roar, startling the group.

High above the capital, Ph1LzA reached back to Techno's outstretched hand despite the distance between them, eyes wide with shock as a bolt burned through his body, dropping him from the sky. The totem hanging from his wrist shattered, applying protective effects in a desperate attempt to restore health. The kingly Avatar watched in horror as Ph1LzA flared his wings to regain altitude, only to be hit in the back by Dream diving down and flipping in mid-air to slam his feet into his body and rebound off, rocketing upward while Ph1LzA spiraled to the ground. His wings stretched after him, limp; there was no way he'd wake up in time to save himself from fall damage that would more than likely kill him.

There was a flash of golden light, and then a pair of squid-like tentacles formed of that light shot up from the center of the circle of pillars, reaching up and wrapping around Ph1LzA's body to catch and save him. They swerved aside as Dream flew back around, firing Dragon's Breath arrows at the tentacles' point of origin.

Gritting his teeth, Techno stood back and flicked from his rapier to his enchanted crossbow, loading a firework onto it. A storm of arrows was sent up after the last End Crystal, managing to get through the sentry masks' bolts to destroy it. The TNT cannon was ready, Fundy and Bad both waiting for a chance to set it off, but Dream wasn't in position for the cannon to take effect. Luckily, his attention was now set on Sky, who gave up his sneak attack chance to save someone he didn't know and unknowingly gained a favor from Techno out of gratitude.

The kingly Avatar flicked to some Ender Pearls, running and throwing them one after another to teleport and jump from pillar to pillar, tracking Dream's erratic movements. Once he selected his new position he switched to a regular bow with arrows and began firing them at Dream to catch his attention. When an arrow buried itself into one of the sentry mask's eyes, the laughing Avatar looked up, moving to jump from the side of a pillar to float higher, grinning madly at Techno as he raised his Twin Bow to point at him.

Perfect.

"Do you know of the tale of Icarus and his wax wings?" Techno began, flicking his hand to the crossbow and checking it over to make sure the durability was high and the correct firework was loaded. "He was told by his father not to fly too close to the sun at the start of their escape, lest the wax holding his feathers together would melt and he'd fall. Icarus heeded his father's words at first, but as he flew on, he grew too excited, too carefree and proud and daring, and forgot his father's words. He soared so high above the ocean into the sky to show off his flying prowess, and the sun melted his wings, and Icarus fell from grace to the dark sea below."

Dream drew back the bowstring as Techno leveled the crossbow at him.

"Do you feel warm, Dream? Are you ready to feel cold?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm listening to [ this mashup](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ae1LdFj3jzw) during the last part of this chapter and the spillover to the next. Technoblade vs Feral Viral Wrath Dream, anyone?


	28. 5. Dance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The battle against the Wither Dragon that was Feral Viral Wrath Dream tears through Sky Capital as a surviving squad of Recruits show up to assist. Things take a turn for the worse when Dream overpowers Sky's own Viral Rage and the Recruits reveal far more sinister intentions.

5\. Dance

The arrows were fired simultaneously.

Techno stumbled backwards, gritting his teeth to power through the wither effect's pain as the arrows buried themselves into the Wolf Armor. He pulled them free and flicked to a Golden Apple, biting into it as quickly as he could, then holding the apple in his mouth as he reloaded the crossbow.

Dream was blown back, flinching at first before snarling angrily, reloading his own bow. The crossbow enchantments allowed the single firework to multiply, allowing the sentry masks a free hit each on the duplicates while the original made impact. He raised the bow to fire again just as another trio of fireworks came at him, alongside a stream of arrows from the crowd of Avatars on the rooftops below. Bombarded by the attacks, Dream was pushed backwards further, holding up the bow and his arms in an attempt to shield himself with just the bracer on his left arm.

 _ **"Now!"**_ Sapnap called out as George looked up anxiously, clutching the Soul Healer charm in his hand over his heart.

Fundy flipped the switch on the cannon, holding down his ears as Bad stepped in front of him, shield up and braced forward protectively. A hiss, then detonation, and blocks of TNT were launched one after another at Dream, exploding into his back and sending him tumbling down towards the ground. His bow flew out of his hand as he screamed and clawed at the air.

"Sky, grab him! He's unarmed!" Sapnap yelled, hands cupped around his mouth. He glanced up in surprise when Technoblade jumped down from the pillar, rapier and water bucket in his hands.

The golden tentacles soared up, reaching for the little speedrunner and wrapping around his body to keep him contained. Sky breathed a sigh of relief, shaky smile on his face. Beside him Seto tended to the unconscious Ph1LzA, pouring a health potion into his mouth and eyeing his spread wings with some interest. "I've got him! It's okay! He still has about half the health bar so he should be-!" the brunet called back.

A burst of light fired from within the wrappings of gold tentacles, radiating outward. Through the translucent cocoon, Dream could be seen smiling widely, hands splayed outward, gripping onto the tentacles. Sparks jumped around the point of contact before magenta light suddenly spread through the gold, consuming, _converting_ , racing back to Sky before anyone could react. The brunet cried out in alarm, body going stiff as though electrified. The gold in his eyes shifted to magenta and he fell silent, dropping to his knees and releasing Dream from the tentacles as Techno splashed down nearby.

"Sky! Sky, what happened?!" Seto blurted out, leaving the unconscious blonde to grip the Butter King by the shoulders and shake him. "Wake up! What did he **do** to you?!"

 _"Not allowed,"_ Dream sang out and laughed, hand flicking to the diamond axe. Magenta light spread over it, altering the code and leaving behind a double-bladed netherite axe with a diamond point jutting from the head, a poleaxe. Similar light passed over his bracer on his left arm, expanding it into a full size shield. He gestured with the poleaxe and the magenta tentacles retreated to Sky, wrapping around him instead and holding him bound as he simply knelt there, motionless and unresponsive to any calls of his name.

The group of Avatars drew closer, shields up to deflect the bolts of energy from the sentry masks. Dream only laughed and darted away, light on his feet as he circled around his friends dancingly. " **Wither** Dragon, Sapnap," Techno said flatly, moving to keep Dream in his sights and facing his front. "Like the Wither changes phases at half health, Dream changed phases from Ender Dragon patterns to Wither pattern. Stay on the move!"

TNT continued raining down, punching holes into the city. Recruits lined roofs and fired arrows and fireworks, aiming for the sentry masks directly this time, hoping to disable them as Dream parkoured his way over holes and broken buildings to draw closer to the Muffinteers and their friends. Blades crossed, axes and swords and staffs crashing against Dream's defenses, whittling down the health bar steadily.

He danced around and among them, the Nether Diamond axe lashing out against shields and swords even as quick strikes by Techno's rapier and Deadlox's emerald pickaxe slashed open shallow wounds over his legs and right arm. When George's netherite sword swept towards him in a wide slash, Dream flicked his axe away briefly to grab the blade in his hand. The metal bit into the protective glove as magenta light passed over the sword, transforming it into a useless stick. George yelped and jumped backwards to escape, making space for Techno to cut in and parry the axe's return before it could hit the brunet.

Sapnap moved in alongside him, determination on his face keeping him focused as his Highland Axe slammed against the Nether Diamond shield, working to disable it with combinations of side strikes and spin attacks. The smile finally dropped off Dream's face, flickering to concern briefly before ending up a snarling expression, teeth bared angrily as he pressed back. The axe in his hand shimmered and he slammed it against both Avatars' weapons, sending them flying back several feet as an explosion went off at the point of contact.

"What the hell was **that**?!" Fundy cried, holding down his hat with one hand and deflecting magenta bolts with a netherite sword of his own.

"Withers set off explosions when they take enough damage, remember? Dream must have re-coded the axe to blow stuff up when it hits," Bad told him, frustrated by the lack of progress made in calming Dream down. If anything, it looked like the speedrunner was growing more enraged. "We're supposed to be _talking_ him down from the Viral Wrath! Hitting him is just making him mad!"

 _"Leave me **alone**!"_ Dream howled out in a fury, shield raised as one of the sentry masks went dark, no longer moving or firing bolts. "I'm **tired** of your stupid games! Just die already so I can be left alone!"

"Wait, what?" Wilbur asked, dumbfounded by the declaration before yelping and putting his shield up, just in time to block the Nether Diamond axe that slammed into it and sent him flying backwards a short distance with another explosion. "Oh, that was a big one! That was almost orgasmic! So much damage!" the brunet exclaimed, riding the shockwave on the cracked shield.

"Wilbur, now is **not** the time to be flirting with Dream! Phil and Tommy already gave you your warnings this week about messing with the status quo!" Fundy yelled in exasperation before screeching in terror, holding up his shield when Dream dashed at him and spun into a whirlwind of axe strikes that ended with another detonation after the Nether Diamond axe shimmered with light.

" _Get out!_ Leave me alone!" the blonde roared, slamming the axe into the ground before himself and blasting a crater into the End stone, the shockwave pushing his friends further away. "I'm sick and tired of people I don't allow to use me **taking** shit from me! This whole ass world doesn't want me to succeed to help my friends and my Player?! Fine! I'll stay in the End where no one can reach me and you can use my name only from now on! I'm not afraid to fail if failure still boosts the ones I care about!"

Sapnap and George stared at him, frozen in place. "What? What's happened to him? Why is Dream talking like that?" the ravenet murmured with a shake of his head. "That's not the way my best friend normally thinks!"

"Oh, Herobrine's been fucking with his head, I see," Deadlox commented with an annoyed look on his face, standing back with his emerald pickaxe resting on one shoulder. "Did the same thing to Sky to weaken his relationships with his friends and make him doubt his self-worth so he'd be easier to take over. It's why Sky was so gung-ho on training Dream and passing on as much of his own experiences as he could. So this stupid shit doesn't repeat but fuck it all, huh?"

The Avatars stood in a loose half-circle in front of Dream, hesitant to keep attacking while he stood before them unsteadily, shield raised and axe held loose in one hand. No more TNT fell, the cannon had finally run out, and the Recruits that had kept their distance with long range attacks now approached grimly, hoods up to shadow their faces and various melee weapons on hand to finish the job. Deadlox gestured towards the Recruits, holding up a hand and shaking his head with a scowl that made them stop in place, looking equally frustrated.

"Why aren't we attacking?!" one of them called out angrily. "This traitor summoned the End dimension right on Sky Capital and killed a ton of people here! Our friends and family got withered away and lost levels because of him! We want justice!"

"Look what he did to Sky! He finally comes back to us from exile and that green psychopath did all this to us and messed up Sky's powers!" another yelled, loaded crossbow still raised threateningly. "His Viral Rage is supposed to be gold, but now it's **that** guy's Viral color! He's a hack and needs to die!"

"You don't understand! It's not his fault! Dream wouldn't do all this on purpose!" Bad protested, taking a step towards the Recruits and waving a free hand placatingly. "The Disillusioned set all this off when they kidnapped him and-!"

"Don't cover this up for him or we'll just take you down with him!" the archer Avatar snapped, redirecting their crossbow to point at Bad instead. The team immediately turned their attention to facing off against the angry Recruits, raising weapons and preparing to defend themselves.

Dream turned to face them as well, tightening his grip on the Nether Diamond axe and growling under his breath. The sentry masks had both been disabled and his attention was entirely on the Recruits, which Dream would later say was the only reason Techno was able to get the drop on him.

The kingly Avatar sprinted several feet before taking a flying leap and slamming his fist against Dream's face, sending the speedrunner crashing to the ground a short distance away and startling everyone still conscious and aware. There was a stunned silence as all eyes locked onto the prone form laying half-curled on the milk white End stone, then achievement messages popped up one after another in the public chat that appeared in each Avatar's vision, screens opening simultaneously.

_[Technoblade has just earned the achievement **[Free the Overworld]**.]_

_[Sapnap has just earned the achievement **[Free the Overworld]**.]_

One after another, names popped up of various Avatars who each seemed to have gained the achievement of freeing the Overworld as the Void above cracked and shattered, pieces falling and disintegrating into nothing and leaving behind the warm glow of a sunset sky. The obsidian pillars and End stone remained, physical reminders of the power of Feral Viral Wrath. All around Sky Capital, the border put in place by Minecraftia to contain the intrusive dimension fell away, allowing for people to be able to flee the city or return.

_[Stacy has just earned the achievement **[Free the Overworld]**.]_

_[Kothra has just earned the achievement **[Free the Overworld]**.]_

_[% &*#%*@$% has just earned the achievement **[Free the Overworld]**.]_

"Techno, what the _fuck_?!" Sapnap finally declared in exasperation, throwing up his arms and staring incredulously at the kingly Avatar, Bad sighing in resignation as Deadlox narrowed his eyes at the glitchy name in the chat screen.

"I was promised one free punch so I took it!" Techno shot back. The two bickered back and forth as the Recruits moved in closer, subtle shifts of air moving as more Avatars teleported in via invites among them and dark red began mixing in with the royal blue. By the time Dream Team and friends caught on to what was going on, they'd already been encircled by the motley crew of Recruits and Cultists all aiming weapons at them.

"What's going on? I thought those two factions were enemies," George muttered warily, backing away to draw closer to Deadlox, the russet-haired Avatar looking over the mixed groups angrily.

"Spies in Sky Army, how long have you been planted in the ranks?" the Dead General asked flatly. The archer Avatar smiled as she drew back her hood, pink flower crown resting cutely on her head.

"They've been mixed in for ages, ever since you and Sky took off and ditched everyone else to live in a screwed up, glitchy world of misery," Stacy returned brightly before calling out. "Kothra, you and the others got them?"

"This has been a most pleasant surprise, yes," the leader of the Cultist spy network declared, approaching the captured Avatars with Dream held comfortably in his arms. Several more Cultists followed him, carrying or dragging along three more bound Avatars, the unconscious forms of Ph1LzA and Sky, and the irritated Setosorcerer, who was gagged to prevent chanting magic. "Now then," Kothra went on with an amiable smile at Techno and Sapnap, "I'll forgive you this once, Technoblade, for laying hands like that on the future Lord Herobrine, and you the same, Sapnap, for your many insults towards Him as well, but it is your only warning to not do it again. We'll be taking both of the vessels of Lord Herobrine back where they belong, but you're all cordially invited to partake in the witnessing of His return to power."

The smile grew wider. "This dance between us has gone on long enough, Sky Army; accept your losses and come quietly. We only need Dream alive for this, Sky's life is merely a bonus we can easily do without if you resist."

With reluctant motion and frustrated glares, the assembled team of friends flicked their hands free of weapons and shields, and raised them in surrender.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dream can only alter Vanilla items; he can't affect Dungeons items/gear.
> 
> I leave up to you to guess at what happened to Sky's Viral state. :)


	29. 34. Journey

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Dream and his friends are taken on the journey to the Nether, Dream continues confronting Herobrine multiple times, gathering information, and realizing that this may be a journey he won't return from.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: Implied suicide idealization, implied suicidal thinking, bargaining with abuser, bruises, restraining, non-consensual touching

34\. Journey

Awareness came back to him slowly, fading in and out while his eyes remained closed. It may be childish but Dream didn't want to face the world just yet, wanted to just drift in that cozy limbo for a little while longer before having to deal with whatever new bullshit Minecraftia decided to toss his way. At most, he could tell he wasn't laid out on cold End stone but a fairly comfortable padding. There were hands on him, but they moved carefully, gently, wrapping shallow cuts on his arms and legs with bandages. Still not trusting of them, but until they moved wrong he'd just keep tabs on what they were messing with on him.

There was a familiar sound in the background, under the quiet chatter of strange voices talking about travel time and trying not to get too excited and loud. Wheels turning, crunching vegetation underneath, and the creaking of axles from carts a little too weighed down to move easily. He could feel it now, motion; he was laying on padding in a moving vehicle, being taken somewhere. To where? By who? What was the last thing he could clearly remember?

_Chains and a beam of light and pain and being torn open while held down and screaming._

Dream jerked his hands up to his mouth and turned over, curling up and shuddering, holding in whimpers and the urge to sob. The hands that had been tending to him had pulled away at his movement but made no attempts to touch him again. A small thing but he could only feel relief and gratitude for that little mercy. Yet another trauma to add to his list; he managed a flicker of rage at it before it was drowned by the misery of another trauma even existing.

He was going to have to find someone to talk to about all this; holding in all these new and old traumas just was not going to be healthy for him in the long run.

There was more hushed talking and then the sound of footsteps as the strangers that tended to him left the area, left him alone to pull himself together. Another thing to be grateful for, whoever those people were, they get all the thumb's ups. Likes clicked. Followed and subbed.

He took in a shaky breath, slowly opening his eyes and letting himself settle into the here and now to anchor himself away from the hazy bad memory. The world came into focus and the first things he saw were wooden walls and a couple of chests and barrels. An Ender chest hummed softly somewhere nearby, out of immediate sight, and probing at his bedding revealed thick blankets and carpet had been placed on stair blocks that had been flipped and rotated into each other to create a makeshift cot.

Carefully, cautiously, Dream pushed himself up and pressed a hand to his cheek, wincing at the soreness and bruising. What had hit him there? Something to do with pink? Hard to remember. He took stock of his condition, turning his arms over to study the strips of blue cloth wrapped around them, dark red stains spotting here and there where bleeding hadn't quite stopped. There was a general overall ache, as though he'd exerted a lot of energy and didn't eat to restore any of it, and a bone-deep exhaustion that made him want to just go back to sleep and be done with the world for a while.

He probably would have done just that if not for his attention being caught by a glow of magenta light not far from him in the same room. Dream looked in its direction, taken aback by the sight of Sky laying on another makeshift cot like his own, bound up in his own tentacles but the light that formed them wasn't the shimmering gold color. They were the same as the light Sky told him he had; what had happened? Why was the Viral Rage color Dream's magenta, and why was the Butter King just laying there, wrapped in them and unresponsive?

Beside him, on yet another cot, Ph1LzA lay on his side, hands bound behind his back and limp wings folded carefully against his shoulders. He breathed unsteadily, unconscious. His robe had been opened partially, and Dream could see wrappings bound around his chest and over one shoulder, as though to keep his ribs stable. Had he taken some hard hit to that part of his body? And when did he even show up? It would take weeks for Ph1LzA to fly to Sky Capital on his own power.

He slid off the cot, surprised by his own unsteadiness, then carefully made his way over to the older Avatars. Cautiously, he held out a hand to the wrappings on Sky, yanking it back when the tentacles seemed to respond to it, loosening and rising up to meet his palm. _'Okaaaay. It's reacting to me, like I have control? That's fucking creepy.'_ How did this happen? And when? Probably another of those things that took place during that block of fuzzy memories that came after.. the memories Dream didn't want to recall just yet.

Sky still didn't react himself, just lay there on his side as though asleep, and his hands had been pulled behind his back, tied with leads in a manner that had Dream think of his time with the Illager raid party. He reached out to undo them.

"Please don't do that. We can't risk our travels if he awakens from the state you placed him in," an even voice called out to him. Dream turned to see who spoke, blinking at an unfamiliar Avatar who stepped into the room from the open doorway. They were tall, dressed formally, with dark hair slicked back save for a few locks that looked untameable, and exuded an aura of restraint, as if constantly holding something back from the world. He gave the stranger a wary look, immediately distrustful of the whole package.

"Speaking from experience, it's not that comfortable to travel like that," Dream retorted drily, gesturing at Sky's bound hands. The stranger's eye twitched a bit.

"Distressing as it is to know you've been mistreated, I still can't allow for Sky to be released. It's for our safety and I assure you that your own safety was taken into account as well," the other Avatar replied. He placed a hand over his heart and executed a respectful bow towards Dream. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Kothra, commander of the spy network. It's good to have you with us at long last."

Dream stared blankly at the man, confused as hell by his words. "Uh, thanks? I guess." He rubbed his head, glancing back at Sky worriedly. What the hell was going on? Not enough information to figure things out and not enough energy or strength to be able to act on any plan just yet. "Look, I just woke up and I'm feeling drained as hell for some reason. You wouldn't happen to have anything to eat?" he asked. Kothra blinked, then smiled at him with a nod.

"I'll have an agent fetch something from the food wagon for you. We're still several days out from our destination, so please get some more rest in the meantime," he replied, gesturing towards the cot. "Personally, I would have liked nicer accommodations for you, but this caravan was the best we could do on short notice to leave the capital."

He dipped his head in a brief nod, then left the room. As soon as Kothra was gone, Dream hurried over to the door to check it, surprised to find it unlocked. He pushed it open, peering out carefully at first, then emerging fully in stunned silence at seeing what Kothra meant by 'caravan'.

There were several carts and wagons rolling ahead in single file, clearing a smoother path for the larger travel wagon he stood on that was pulled by a team of Ravagers. Each wagon and cart had Avatars and Illagers dressed in some unifying shade of dark red, whether it be capes, cloaks, bandannas, robes, or some other object. More Avatars rode on horseback in protective formation around the caravan, looking forward with a sort of triumphant joy mixed with guarded expressions as they scanned the dark oak forest around them for danger. How did he end up with a bunch of Cultists when he had been in Sky Capital?!

"Dream!"

He looked up sharply at the sound of his name in familiar voices, looking around quickly until he spotted a nearby cart rolling alongside the large one he was on. Unlike the others, this one was a prison wagon, a decent-sized box of iron bars and bedrock with an iron door plopped onto a wheeled platform and pulled with a team of horses, a caped Cultist sitting up front to guide it. Within the cage were Sapnap, George, Bad, Technoblade, Wilbur, Fundy, and two other Avatars he didn't know, all of them with hands bound behind their backs and looking up at him in relief. Dream hurried to the railing of the wagon, leaning over it to call back to them.

"Guys! Are you okay? What the hell is going on?!" he yelled down and then back at the Cultists manning the wagon he stood on. "Let them go!" The red-robed Avatars looked at one another in confusion, fidgeting in place. "Did you hear me?! I can get louder! I've had training!"

"Please don't confuse the Anarchics, sir," Kothra spoke up suddenly, leaping onto the wagon from the side, trident in hand. Dream backed away from him, wary of the weapon. The taller Avatar flicked it away to hold out a dish of curry. "Apologies for the delay. I've brought you something to eat; is this satisfactory?"

"I don't care about food! I care about the fact you have my friends locked up in a cage!" Dream snapped back, gesturing at the prison wagon, then back at the room he had emerged from. "And Sky and Philza both are hurt and tied up, what the fuck gives?! Let them go or I'll do it myself!"

Kothra tilted his head, eyebrows raised, then sighed in faint exasperation. "I told these Avatars to surrender peacefully so they could be transported with us to witness Lord Herobrine's return, and Sky's life is our insurance that they behave themselves," he explained and narrowed his gaze at Dream. "The reverse is true for you. Comply, or they'll be subjected to exposure to the Infected until they join their ranks," Kothra threatened quietly.

 _"Didn't I tell you? I've known since the start; do as I say, or your friends pay the price."_ Herobrine's voice murmured in his memory as Dream paled, staring unfocused at the taller Avatar.

"Do we have an understanding?" Kothra asked patiently, unaware of the Virus's presence.

"..Yes," Dream replied quietly, and accepted the dish of food with trembling hands when it was offered again. Kothra dipped his head respectfully before walking away to take a seat at the top of the wagon, overseeing the whole caravan.

"Dream! Dreaaaam!" Sapnap and George both called up to him again, pressing close to the bars. He looked down at them again, unable to fully hide his anxiety. "You got this, Dream!" Sapnap encouraged, "Remember?! _Dudududu!_ "

The melody sparked him, and Dream quickly shoved the surge aside, hiding it as best he could. He swallowed, shook his head at them, then turned away, ignoring further calls of his name as he returned to the little room. Above him, Kothra smiled smugly, directing it towards Sapnap in particular.

\---

The End remained cold and desolate. The chill wind passing over the island played with Dream's hair as he sat on the base of the bedrock fountain, idly kicking his heels against the End stone below. He kept his gaze on his boots, refusing to look up at anything else. Turning away from George, Sapnap, and the others had been hard, but he had to stay focused. He wasn't able to reach the End as he intended, to hide away until Fundy could analyze his files, but Dream wasn't one to let one failure halt his progress.

 _"But I got no, but I got no, kakorrhaphiophobia,"_ he sang softly to himself, _"Phobia, phobia, phobia! I hear battalions sing of my demise but I don't know the words. I take a road of my own making, on a journey, no returning, wah oh, wah oh, that's how it goes."_ He cut himself off with an irritated hiss as hands reached from behind to cup his jaw and tilt his head upwards.

Herobrine loomed over him, looking down with a neutral expression, unaffected by the rebellious glare aimed back. _"That song does nothing here,"_ He said flatly.

"It's not **for** you," Dream returned coldly, "And stop touching me."

 _"I'm making sure you didn't take unnecessary damage that could harm your voice, **my** voice," _the Virus said conversationally, fingertips prodding at his neck and cheeks.

" **My** voice," Dream growled through his teeth, cringing when Herobrine applied more pressure in His grip.

 _"Remember your position. My followers have your precious friends and they're of no use to me sane,"_ He pointed out. _"You think you've found yourself some semblance of peace here? I could simply crush your skull and reset this moment."_ The pressure increased until Dream let a whimper escape him, then it eased away. _"You're far more troublesome to mold than Sky; is it any wonder you're hated as much as you claim to be loved?"_

"If your plan relies on taking a body that's beloved by many, why pick someone like me who is 'hated' so much?" Dream asked with a sneer. Herobrine narrowed His eyes, the white gleaming brighter.

He twisted His hands suddenly to one side.

A sharp crack.

Black.

\---

Ph1LzA woke the next morning while Dream stirred his fork through his breakfast in idle thought. His attention caught on the sound of wings flapping wildly and he set the food aside to rush to the other Avatar's side. "Phil! Take it easy! Hey, hey! Don't break your wings!" Dream told him, holding up his hands as Ph1LzA muttered curses and looked around in a panic. "Phil! Philza! It's me! Hey, look, see?"

"Dream? What the fucking hell is going on?" Ph1LzA demanded, once he recognized the little blonde. "You look like shit." Dream gave him a lopsided grin, shrugging as he kept himself wrapped in the dark red blanket provided to him by the Cultists. The shadows under his eyes had deepened but his smile remained bright as ever.

"Getting abducted by Herobrine's nutty followers will do that to you," he replied and looked up as the door opened, letting in a pair of Cultists. He stood up and backed away, watching warily as the two of them bent over Ph1LzA, the blonde snapping at them and grunting in pain while they checked his healing injuries. One uncorked a bottle of potion, ready to administer it, but Ph1LzA kept his mouth shut and kept dodging the bottle. "Here, let me. He trusts me," Dream offered with a sigh, stepping forward.

The Cultist immediately gave the potion to him and Ph1LzA watched in curious confusion as Dream took a sip of the potion and waited a minute before giving it back. "It's safe, Phil, just take it," the speedrunner told him and stepped back again. Ph1LzA pinned him with a dark look, silently demanding words later, then accepted the potion, wincing slightly as it began working on healing him. The Cultists did one more check, then left a bowl with baked potatoes on the table next to the cot before leaving the room.

"Dream. Talk," Ph1LzA spoke firmly as he shifted in place to get comfortable, wings folding down and melting back into his cloak.

"I don't know what to say. I don't have a lot of memory of what I've been doing or where I've been since..," Dream trailed off, visibly recoiling from the memory of _chains, pain, blood_. "I don't know, I can't really remember. I was experimented on and everything's blank after that." He gestured around helplessly. "And then I woke up here, the Cultists captured everyone and I can't fight back, not if I want to keep you all from becoming Infected." He hugged himself, looking away. "I should have stayed away from all of you, you shouldn't have come looking for me; you would have been safer if you'd just left me alone."

"Bullshit. We're your friends, we're always gonna come if you get in over your head with shit," Ph1LzA shot back. "We're not gonna save you from _every_ little thing, cuz you gotta stumble and fall sometimes on the little shit to learn how to deal with it and cope with the bigger shit. But massive fuck-all shit like having fucking factions hunt you down to mess with your head? Trying to tackle **that** alone is stupid and you should call in friends and support for help!"

Dream kept his eyes on his hands, twisting his fingers and wringing them nervously before sighing. "And you all got captured anyway," he snarked back, throwing his hands up in a shrug. "Herobrine Cultists and Sky Army and Disillusioned; how's a handful of Avatars supposed to help me avoid almost the entire population of Minecraftia?" Ph1LzA just leveled a look at him that expressed without words his thoughts on that.

"Think about who you are and what you and your Player gained together. How do you think Sky Army became established?" he asked, then looked at the potatoes. "At least they're feeding us. Where are we going?"

"Probably the Nether, since that's Herobrine's territory," Dream muttered, picking up the potatoes gingerly to help the older blonde eat. "We'll know for sure when we get there."

\---

"Why even did you pick **me**?" Dream asked in frustration, arms folded over his chest as he sat on the edge of one of the obsidian pillars. Herobrine stood behind him, looking over the End island. "I don't have system access to Minecraftia or the SkyDoesMinecraft server it's anchored to, I'm just a scout in the Army, or I _was_ , before I got kicked out and labeled a traitor thanks to your stupid ass uploading yourself into me." The blonde huffed and pulled his hands over his face with an aggravated sound rising from low in his throat.

 _"Your voice and your connection to others, that's all I need to accomplish our goal,"_ Herobrine replied, unphased by Dream jumping to his feet and spinning around to glare up at him.

"I don't share **your** goal, you maniac! You're trying to kill everyone in Minecraftia! I don't **want** that! I'm nothing like you and you're _nothing_ like me!" he yelled, stamping a foot in lieu of having a taller surface to slam his fists on.

 _"You want to be the best, don't you? That drive for superiority, to stand above all others; you need to crush your opponents to climb over them and reach the pinnacle,"_ Herobrine said in calm confidence. He reached out, ignoring Dream's flinch and half-dodge from the gesture, and flicked His hand over the End island. In place of the chirping Endermen, the field was covered in hundreds of broken bodies, Avatars of all kinds scattered about and so, so still. Every color of cape was splayed out, streaked with rust-red. Among the bodies were his own friends, laying in unnatural positions near the bedrock fountain. Sapnap's body lay across George's, ever the protector. Dream recoiled from the sight, one fist rising to his mouth as he strove to fight off the rising sick feeling. _"We are alike in that manner, in that need to prove ourselves greater than any that had come before us,"_ the Virus concluded.

"I don't want that win if it comes with a price that others pay for me," Dream told him, looking away from the field and into the Void instead, drawing small comfort from the static black. "I'm not afraid to fall and fail," he added with a grin, walking forward and raising his arms in familiar showman-style, "because I learn from the failures of others and others will learn from my failures. Hell, **I** learn from my failures! That's why I'm not afraid!"

 _"Yet you turn your back on the failures of the Avatars who couldn't match our power,"_ Herobrine pointed out coldly. Dream spun on his heel, facing the Virus with the same grin.

"Who said I was? I said I don't want the win if they're the ones to pay for it. But if they rise when I fall?" The speedrunner winked and laughed. "Then I'll pay for it."

He tipped backwards over the edge of the pillar, wheezing cackles following and fading on the wind.

\---

Ph1LzA spent time explaining carefully to Dream the events he knew of when it came to the battle in Sky Capital. The eruption of Feral Viral Wrath, the calling of the End into the Overworld that would have swallowed Minecraftia had it not been forcibly contained to the city by the world's awareness erecting a border to shield against it, Dream being blind to the identities of the Avatars desperately trying to pull him down and calm him out of the wrath, the losses of life and destruction of property, not knowing how the battle ended because he'd been shot by one of the mask's bolts and then body-slammed into unconsciousness, all of it was discussed quietly over plates of food that differed in quality between them.

Dream stared at the half-eaten steak on its bed of mashed potato and butter, no longer appealing as a meal. "I hurt you," he finally muttered, looking briefly up at the bandages wrapped around Ph1LzA's torso. "That's code damage.. I hit you hard enough to damage your physical coding."

"Oy, I didn't tell you this so you could go angst in a corner," the older blonde told him firmly. "This is me filling in the blanks for you so you can deal with it now and not have some shithead in the Cultists use it against you."

It had taken some convincing on Dream's part to have Kothra allow for Ph1LzA's hands to be unbound, namely that a Cultist would have to always be present to watch over him, he was not allowed to access his hotbar, inventory, or any screens, and Dream could not ask for similar treatment for anyone else. He'd faltered at that last concession until his friends yelled up at him from the prison wagon that they'd be okay as long as he'd let them know Ph1LzA was alright.

In a way, it helped that he didn't have to make that choice alone, but it still hurt to have made it all the same. Having Ph1LzA free to eat and rest more comfortably lessened it; he could bear a little more suffering as long as it helped his friends be more comfortable and put them in a position to help themselves and others better.

"I guess," Dream finally sighed in reluctant acceptance, poking at the steak while Ph1LzA polished off the last of his salad and eyed the meat with a friendly gleam. He pushed the plate in the older man's direction and grinned sardonically. "So with all of Herobrine inside me, I can devastate Minecraftia pretty easily. What I told Sky weeks ago held true after all."

"Nah, I think that's bullshit," the other blonde replied promptly, cutting into the steak happily. "Cuz Sky didn't have the Herobrine Virus backing him in his Rages and he fucked shit up pretty hard during 'em. It's another source of strength that powers the Viral state beyond having a souped up non-malevolent virus to kick-start it."

Dream rested his chin on one hand, thinking it over, drawing up on the memories of all the sources of information that had given him some amount of knowledge about the Viral state and the levels of destructiveness each had. What was similar? What was different? Where did Herobrine factor in?

Technoblade had mentioned that Dream would have been considered a major threat to Sky Army even if he'd never been infected by Herobrine and that was why Techno wanted to keep him and Dream Team away from Sky Army as much as possible, to avoid their notice. Why? Because of the sphere of influence by followers.

Sky Army drew their power from Sky, who gained power directly from his Player through the soul-link that was in proportion to the amount of followers his Player had, pouring their goodwill, love, and admiration towards him in a flow of positive energy. More followers meant more energy directed to the Player, and that meant greater strength and influence for Sky, which converted to enormous destructive potential for the Viral state.

Dream the Player had gained a massive following rapidly and was gaining still more constantly, millions and millions of outpourings of love and attention fed into him, channeling its way into Dream the Avatar and expanding his sphere of influence in Minecraftia. He just couldn't do anything with it directly because he was a NewGen, weak in raw power but free to specialize himself in anything he wished.

Until Herobrine saw that potential caged in him by his rank and tried to take control, and George and Sapnap reacted by sealing Him in with the Anti-Viral Artifacts, which forced an elevation to the role of Anti-Viral Avatar.

And **that** rank had access to all the power fed in by the soul-link to his Player and those millions of followers and subscribers.

Another spark flashed in Dream's eyes and he just as quickly squashed it, allowing hopelessness to settle into place as he flinched. Ph1LzA caught on and nodded somberly in naive agreement.

"It's the followers, the people in the Player world who love you, who love your Player, and send him warm thoughts and well wishes, love and admiration. That creates power in the link between you two.. that creates power Herobrine was programmed to use," he explained quietly, taking in another mouthful of steak.

\---

Herobrine remained standing on top of the central pillar of the bedrock fountain, arms folded over His chest as He watched the green-clad speedrunner dance to music only he could hear, a series of spins, jumps, and bends that were more acrobatic than specific to dance. This was the second reset; the first emergence of both Virus and Anti-Viral had Dream bolt for the edge of the End island and throw himself off, turning in mid-air just enough to throw both middle fingers up at Herobrine before being swallowed by the Void.

Irritating.

Dream did his best to ignore the luminous eyes burning a glare into his back as he kicked into another spin, working out the stiffness in his muscles and training his movements to move more fluidly, instinctively. It would be useful in the future, so long as he didn't focus too much on it. Keep it in, keep it in, don't let it be known.

Just let this be fun. Let this be some measure of comfort despite being surrounded by so many stressful things that he was constantly in a state of sickness.

 _"Is this meant to **do** anything?"_ Herobrine asked gruffly, sounding far too close compared to where last Dream saw Him.

"Is it annoying you?" he returned in a syrupy sweet tone as he continued to dance, keeping his back to the Virus just to add insult to injury. There was no answer so he grinned. "Good." He tapped a rhythm onto the End stone, humming to himself as he performed a little shimmy. This time, that was definitely for fun. There was music buzzing in the soul-link, the potential growing, and Dream soaked in it, hugging himself and laughing softly at the warmth radiating from his Player's soul.

And then his shoulders were grabbed and all he felt was cold, a freezing wind that was entirely different from the one that blew over the End.

"You need to learn to keep your hands to yourself," Dream growled, jerking himself free and walking away, no longer in the mood to keep practicing.

But the cold lingered and sharpened his focus, another piece of knowledge gained and stored.

\---

Dream sat as close to the iron cage as he was allowed to be, shoulder pressed against Sapnap's through the bars as they spoke softly, catching each other up on what was going on around them. The caravan had passed through a dark oak forest, a desert, some plains, and now were moving through a birch forest, following a maintained road that most likely led to a large town or city. There had been a few squadrons of Recruits they had come across on the way, from the combat units deployed to the Nether Portals and that didn't return to the Capital during the call to arms. Some fighting broke out but Kothra dragged Sky out of the lead wagon's room and put a dagger to his neck, threatening Corruption if the Recruits didn't retreat. Dream had flinched at the angry glares shot his way as he stood helplessly nearby. What did they expect him to do? He was just as bound as they were, chained by his friends' lives.

"So Philza's okay now?" Sapnap asked, crouched in place. Dream kept his hands in view of the Cultists guarding the prison wagon, the condition Kothra placed to let him talk with his friends.

"Yeah. Some of the Cultists wanted to pop him in here with you guys but Phil pointed out to Kothra that I already paid penalties to have him 'free' and out of respect for me he wouldn't try to escape or fight them," he answered and huffed. It didn't feel good, seeing the older Avatar accept being a free captive. Ph1LzA remained on the lead wagon but leaned over the railing to see Techno and Wilbur, both of whom looked relieved to see him and shuffled closer to the corner of the cage to look up at him.

"And Sky?" Deadlox asked, worried expression overtaking his usual apathetic-looking one. Sapnap had introduced the two unknown Avatars to Dream, who pulled away a short distance when he learned Seto's identity and nearly hyperventilated until George called his name and gave him breathing exercises to follow along and help calm him down. Seto at least had the grace to look guilty and regretful when Deadlox pinned him with a flat glare.

"Still unconscious, I'm sorry," Dream sighed, running one hand through his hair. "I just.. I don't know what I did.. they won't let me touch him to get an idea of what happened. He's still got Viral Rage active.. I thought it would have exhausted his energy by now and shut down but it hasn't.. and it's in my Viral color but, like, _I'm_ not in Viral state right now!"

"At least it's not messing with the soul-link to Adam or backlashing," Deadlox muttered, shifting on his feet. "Nobody wants a repeat of when our soul-links got severed and we thought our Players had died." Dream gave him a puzzled look, head tilting as an eyebrow raised over the eyes of his restored smiling face mask. The russet-haired Avatar shrugged, "It's old history. Herobrine managed to hit the coding for our soul-link connections to our Players during a surprise attack and it broke the link temporarily. Suddenly losing that connection made Sky and I go batshit cuckoo until it was re-established."

Dream's focus sharpened before he forced it to scatter, seeding despair and calling up the fear and panic from seeing Seto, let it settle in mind as he jumped track, holding it in place. Another mask. "The soul-link can be cut and reconnected? ..What if you'd been prepared for it? Would you have lost your minds?"

"No," Setosorcerer spoke up. "During the last months of the Viral Wars, I mentally prepared myself with meditation and discipline before I severed my own soul-link to my Player, both to shake off the negative energy he'd been feeding me as well as allow for travel to Earth with everyone in the Team." He bobbed his head back and forth in lieu of a free hand to gesture with. "Afterwards, the connection was re-established when I came back to Minecraftia with everyone and let my Player log in to me."

"Okay. Interesting," Dream murmured softly and both Sapnap and George shot him sharp looks, mouths opening and ready to ask questions that would demand answers he couldn't give. The appearance of Kothra silenced them before they could speak and Dream looked up at the serious-faced Avatar.

"Visiting time is over. We're making camp for the night, so return to the room," Kothra told him and held out a hand to help him stand. Dream accepted the assistance, murmuring goodnight to his friends as he was led away. "Fresh water has been brought in for your bath and dinner has been brought for you and your friend. We'll reach Bayside Harbor by tomorrow afternoon and board a ship to get to our destination."

"We're crossing the ocean?" Dream asked in surprise, looking up at the other Avatar.

"We'd use teleportation but that'd require letting your friends' hands be unbound and don't think us as stupid enough to allow a Sysop access to console commands," Kothra returned flatly as the two of them boarded the lead wagon. He broke away to take his seat on the upper level as Ph1LzA waved goodnight to his companions before falling into step at Dream's side.

"You okay?" the older Avatar asked, "Noticed you dodged some stuff George and the others were asking you earlier about how you're holding up." He reached out and rested a hand on Dream's shoulder, lifting it immediately when Dream jerked away from the contact.

"Sorry. Reflex," the shorter blonde muttered, tugging his cloak back into place. "I'm feeling tired so I'm just gonna take my bath and go to bed. You can have whatever they served for me, just make sure to share something with Sky so his hunger stays up." He hurried ahead, not wanting to see what expression was on Ph1LzA's face at what happened.

\---

"You're always on my case about how no one actually gives a fuck about me, how about I turn it around on you?!" Dream yelled up at the Virus standing on the bedrock fountain. "Herobrine, hah! You're an old creepypasta no one gives two shits about! You're not scary, no one falls for those stupid jump scare videos, you're like a Minecraft boomer!" He waved his hands around as Herobrine scowled at him. "Oooh, look at me, I'm a default Steve skin with no eyeballs! _Spooooky~!_ My friend George is more intimidating than you, and he shits himself if I say 'Hi' without advance warning!"

 _"What meaningless babbling are you doing now?"_ the Virus growled.

"Nothing, cuz that's what you are. Absolutely.. nothing," Dream sneered and spun on his heel, gesturing with his hands as if to dismiss Him entirely. "Go get some prune juice, Boomer. Come back when you're an actual threat. It's embarrassing to even look at you!"

There was a rush of wind and Dream managed to choke out a cry of alarm before he was slammed up against the bedrock pillar, a hand around his throat holding him in place as he kicked out at the Virus growling. His head swam from the impact and he gasped for air, his own hands scrabbling to free himself from the iron grip.

 _"I was crafted from the fear generated by the tales of those early Players, my power is rooted in the legitimacy of the acknowledgment of me by the creators of this game, my code is what brought life into this world,"_ Herobrine snarled out, tightening His grip slowly. _"I may as well be your GOD and you'd do well to submit and surrender your body to me!"_

"Only.. god I know.. is Philza Minecraft," Dream gasped out, eyes fluttering closed as his vision grew darker, fuzzier. The pressure around his neck increased once more before releasing him, letting him collapse onto the bottom of the bedrock basin. He coughed, sucking in air greedily and whining at the fire burning his throat. Herobrine only stood over him, still scowling. Dream pushed himself over onto his back, gesturing weakly at the Virus. "Reporting.. for abuse. This is toxic.. behavior. Never.. gettin' stans.. that way."

 _"You think you stand a chance against me? Here? Out there?"_ Herobrine questioned in a low, threatening tone. _"You're weak, a pathetic NewGen with barely any power. What you possess now is only what you have because of **me**. You only wield **my** power, and poorly at that. When I am in control, the world will see true superiority and the full potential of that power."_

"Sucks to be you cuz you're not getting me," Dream shot back hoarsely, gingerly rubbing at his throat. "Why do you complain about me taking care of my throat when you're the one constantly messing it up like this?" He started scooting backwards against the bedrock when Herobrine reached for him again. "H-Hey! Stop! No!" The hand gripped his neck again, pinning him in place as he grabbed onto His wrist again, struggling to get free.

There wasn't as much pressure this time, just enough to hold Dream in place as the cold from before passed over him again, an icy chill that settled on the surface of his skin and soothed the fire in his throat. He sighed in relief, then shot the Virus a glare. "No means no, don't you know anything about this little concept called 'personal space'? Or 'mutual consent'?" the blonde muttered. "This is the kind of shit that gets you cancelled on social media."

 _"Doesn't it get tiring, opening your heart and caring about others, when so many of them want nothing more than to do that very thing to you? Betray you, mistreat you, exploit you, **use** you?" _Herobrine crooned as the chill spread further over Dream, sank deeper into him, until it reached bone and drained away warmth and energy. He lay there, weary and aware he should be struggling but unable to bring himself to do so. _"Wouldn't it just be easier to give in, give control to me, stop this futile struggling?"_

The hand pulled away and Dream exhaled shakily, a puff of visible breath escaping him as he closed his eyes. "No," he refused quietly. "Not happening."

_"Stubborn fool."_

"I'm told it's my inner Leo coming out. Deal with it."

\---

Bayside Harbor's residents stayed indoors, shutters closing tight over the windows and doors locking, as the Cultist caravan made its way through. Dream and Ph1LzA sat side by side on the little balcony just outside the room they used, Kothra seated in his usual place on the upper level of the lead wagon. Stacy hadn't traveled with them in the usual sense, as she ran ahead to scout the path, messaging back to Kothra, and then returning in the evenings to rest. She ran ahead now to secure the boat that would carry them across the ocean.

Ph1LzA had spent the morning fussing over Dream, who woke up with a visible hand-shaped bruise around his throat. The older man had seen it and grown very still and silent, a near-tangible aura of rage radiating from him as his wings half-emerged from cloak form, quivering from the emotion. There was a quiet demand to know who had laid that hand on the little speedrunner and Dream could only give him a tremulous smile and a shake of his head, face hidden behind his mask. So Ph1LzA gently wrapped soft bandages around his neck, then pulled him into a hug, wings unfurling to shield them from view and further muffle the sounds of sobs against his _hakama_.

Since then Dream had remained silent, sitting in place and breathing in slow, regular beats.

Kothra approached once the caravan pulled into the harbor and Stacy waved at them from the docks, pointing at a ship with a grumpy villager standing beside her. "We'll be boarding the ship momentarily. Do we still have an agreement about your behavior?" he asked calmly. Ph1LzA bristled, folding his arms over his chest.

"Listen, you fucking shit, I already told you I'd stay put as a fuckin' captive cuz of what Dream gave up for me! Don't go acting like I'd purposely screw that up for him at any opportunity!" he snarked back and huffed, scowling up at the ship as the Cultists began unloading supplies from the wagons and carrying them onto the ship.

The prison wagon was unlocked, armed Cultists standing guard as one other helped the bound Avatars jump off and land on the cobblestone walkway. "Where are you taking us now?" Sapnap demanded as the group was nudged into moving along and followed the line of red-clothed Avatars up the docks. "Where's Dream? What did you creeps do to him?!"

"Time to go," Kothra murmured, reaching out to touch fingers to Dream's shoulder. The green-clad Avatar jerked in place, pulling away from the contact briefly, before holding himself still with another steadying breath and nodding. Ph1LzA eyed him warily but they both stood up together and followed the spy network leader, pausing for a moment as the pair of robed Cultists that regularly tended to Sky and Ph1LzA for medical treatment emerged from the room, carrying the Butter King on a simple stretcher.

They walked together, part of the procession of Cultists and captives, until they reached the ship and boarded. George, Sapnap, and the others were taken down below deck while Kothra led Dream, Ph1LzA, and Sky to a large guest room with three beds hastily placed down and furniture rearranged to divide the space neatly. Meals were then set onto a small table with chairs and then the Cultists that set up the living space saluted the spymaster before heading out, chatting cheerfully among themselves about the kind of celebration they'd be expecting soon.

"This will be your space for the next day or so as we sail. There's fresh water for any personal needs, but if you need anything else, just let one of the agents know." Kothra looked around the room and nodded in satisfaction. "Please rest up. We still have a long way to go to reach your future territory."

"I'm not Herobrine," Dream finally spoke, harsh and soft but still defiant. Kothra only gazed impassively at him.

"Not yet," he acknowledged, then left.

Ph1LzA glared at the door before giving Dream a concerned look. "You alright there? You've been quiet all day," he asked, reaching out before aborting the movement and pulling his hand back to tuck into his sleeve. Dream made a motion with one hand, back and forth in a so-so gesture.

"I'm dealing with a lot. It's.. it's tiring. I'm tired," he replied and sighed. "So tired." He headed for the small adjoining room, leaving the older Avatar to look around and rub fingers over his eyes with an exasperated sigh.

Sky had been placed on a bed, hands unbound and moved to rest at his sides. The magenta light of the Viral tentacles stayed wrapped around his body, holding his arms mostly immobile. His eyes had been closed at the start of the journey and remained that way still. He was checked regularly by the Cultist medics and Ph1LzA helped keep him fed and hydrated with pieces of bread and bottles of water. There were no signs he'd be waking up anytime soon.

Dream wasn't allowed to make any contact with the Commander of the Sky Army, not that he'd tried anyway. Too busy looking guilty over his actions during the Feral Viral state and muttering repeatedly to himself to own his mistakes and failures. It made Ph1LzA want to shake the younger man by the shoulders to snap him out of it, but even light touches made Dream react as though he'd been traumatized when no one was able to see, able to protect him.

"I find the bastard that did that to you, I'm kicking their ass so hard, they'll wish they were in Hardcore so they can escape me hunting them down to do it again," Ph1LzA growled under his breath, stalking towards the table to see what was left for dinner.

\---

_"You're breaking down, little by little,"_ Herobrine crooned and laughed, a dark chuckle that washed over Dream and added to the cold around him. _"Getting closer to the seat of my power, and you're wasting away in here while I grow and consume and convert what's left of you."_

"I'm not making it easy for you, though," the blonde shot back, pulling his cloak tighter around himself, the hood drawn up over his head. Herobrine only laughed again, drawing closer as the dead wind of the End grew warmer, the Void slowly growing crimson. "What are you laughing about now?"

 _"You don't even realize those are the same words Sky said to me, before his mind was so torn open he lay bleeding and broken at my feet, and I took control to sing The Convergence into being,"_ the Virus told him, reaching out with both hands to rest fingertips against Dream's head. _"Would you like to see? My memory of that day, when the Butter King fell?"_

"Not really-," Dream began, cut off by a gasp as his vision swept from the changing End landscape to a gold mine, dimly lit despite the dozens of torches and glowstone lamps decorating the open spaces. A few feet in front of him knelt Sky-of-the-past, horrifically injured and looking up at him with hollow eyes. His sword arm broken in several places, bone exposed to air and bent unnaturally; clothes bloodied and torn, still more limbs with bends and bumps that hinted at broken bone beneath the surface. Hair loose, matted, tangled and clotted with still more blood.

 _"He begged for death in that other world, to cease to exist to escape the pain. And I gave him that freedom in exchange for his voice and his body,"_ Herobrine went on as the brunet collapsed in a sickeningly wet heap and gave one last exhale before his eyes went dark. _"The same will happen to you."_

Dream darted forward, escaping the physical contact, and the vision swept away. His own heart pounded, a sick feeling rising that he struggled to contain. "No, **no** , I'm going to keep fighting you. Somehow, some way, there's **got** to be something to stop you!" he gasped out, turning to keep the Virus in his sight. Herobrine spread His hands with a slow and vicious smile.

 _"This world is already beginning to corrupt, your mental plane. See how it is converting to the Nether? To my world of power?"_ He asked, inviting Dream to look around at the milk white blocks slowly staining red, as if oozing blood from within. _"You're going to be mine, Dream. As you were always meant to be the moment that arrow touched you."_

"No.. **no**!" Dream yelled frantically, looking around at the shifting landscape as he grabbed at the clasp of his cloak. The words, what were the words? He'd memorized them, studied every song in that book and practiced them over and over before he ran into George and the others in the swamp. Deep breaths, steady. He took in a deep breath shakily, exhaled slowly, and pushed the growing fear away to deal with later as he lifted a hand, tapping out the melody on the stone with the heel of one foot.

 _"This is my biome, it's what I call home, all of my time I've spent building you! From the moment I spawned, whenever I log on, I know it will always be me and you!"_ Dream sang, spreading his hand open as a pulse spread out from around him, a bubble that pressed out against the pressure Herobrine exuded. As it passed, blocks within the boundary of the bubble shimmered as if gold-touched, and the effects of an Enchanted Golden Apple self-applied to Dream, pink particle effects hovering around him. _"And it was cold like December, the wasteland you used to be, but I put you at the center, now you're beautiful, I agree!"_ he sang on, narrowing his eyes as the bubble grew steadily drawing closer to Herobrine, who only stood in place with a confident smile, _"Now it's too late to keep playin', time to log off for the night! I'd never call that time wasted, and I'll be right back when it's bright!"_

Herobrine chuckled, cocking His head to one side. _"Amusing. You've been studying the Sky Songs, but you don't have his voice."_ His smile grew wider. _" **I** do."_ A flick of His hand and a diamond pickaxe appeared in His grip, glinting with the light of enchantment. _"And it seems you don't know.. **I** have a song of my own."_

And then the pressure increased, slowing the bubble's approach as the Virus began to sing with Sky's voice.

_"~~Have you seen the Herobrine? Roams your world in the default skin?~~ Oo-oo-oo-oo-ooohh!"_

Dream faltered, the chill he'd managed to shake off touching him once more as the low, haunting melody spread over the landscape. His hand trembled. Wh-what was going on?!

 _"~~Though He was removed, He shall rise again!~~"_ Herobrine took a step forward, smiling as He continued to sing and approach the bubble of code shielding Dream. A black spiral grew at His feet and wherever it touched, the blocks flickered and jittered. _"~~Watching you from a distant shore, He'll come back stronger than before.~~ Oo-oo-oo-oo-ooohh!"_

The pressure and the cold increased again and Dream stepped back reflexively, flinching as the bubble of protection immediately dropped, cancelled by his movement. In the same moment, Herobrine was suddenly standing before him, looming over him menacingly. _"~~When the darkness comes, He will strike for sure.~~"_

Dream took another step back, struggling to move under the sudden oppressive aura. His legs felt numb, as if they'd fallen asleep and he could barely register them as attached to his body. He tried to continue the song from earlier, but could only manage a raspy whisper that lacked the melody. He looked around desperately for something to use as an escape or advantage, all while Herobrine continued to approach, but a thick gray fog rolled in, swirling around him and taking on the reddish tint of the Nether.

_"~~In the fog is where He waits, even up to these present dates.~~ Oo-oo-oo-oo-ooohh!"_

The mask couldn't lock on to Herobrine in the thick fog, couldn't track His location in the swirls and eddies of crimson-tinted gray. Dream pushed the mask up off his face, tapping it back into goggles and resting them on his head as he searched visually, scanning for the slightest movement or difference in color that would give him a clue as to where the Virus went. He just needed an indication of direction, something to let him know where to run that would be opposite of Herobrine's location.

 _"~~If you go against Him, you will meet your fate.~~"_ Sky's voice used in such an ominous song just added to the frightening situation. Dream associated it with his friend and mentor, a teacher in song and Viral state control. This tainted the connection, made his skin crawl from the violation of it. He tapped his hands against his legs, both to reassure himself they were still whole and to check if he could feel them as he shuffled back again, mapping out several escape routes he could run if he could just figure out which direction to run in-!

_"~~Watch your back, you know where He hides.~~ Oo-oo-oo-oo-ooohh!"_

Dream froze when his back hit on something solid that was very much not an obsidian pillar or an Enderman. His breath caught in his throat, a shudder running through him as the voice sang on right behind him. _"~~He can come at you from all sides.~~ Oo-oo-oo-oo-ooohh!"_ Dream spun around, eyes wide and face paling as his arms were grabbed, pinned in place, Herobrine leaning forward to press their foreheads together. Luminous white eyes bore into his own, swallowing the whole of his field of view. The pressure grew unbearable, crushing, consuming, draining away what little energy and bravado Dream had managed to pull together, leaving him breathless as tears streamed down his face.

_"~~Miner beware, He will never die.~~"_

He closed his eyes, slumping back as the fog engulfed them in crimson and black, embers of Nether flame drifting on the wind.

_"~~Miner beware, **I** will never die.~~"_

\---

The ship sailed smoothly on, with their destination only half a day away. Dream watched the dolphins in the ocean follow alongside the ship, leaping out of the water playfully as they rode the wake. A tired smile rested on his face as he leaned on the rail, the cool wind passing over him while he waited for a Cultist to take notice of him so he could ask for something to pass the time with. He'd emptied his valuables from his inventory into an Ender chest in the room and what he had left wasn't useful for keeping his hands and mind occupied for very long.

He spent much of his early morning spinning a clock in an item frame repeatedly, which had been fun for a while. Ph1LzA made him stop when he woke up and caught him at it, said he looked like an angsty madman doing that, which only made Dream spin it a few more times out of playful spite before he put the clock into the Ender chest as well.

Now he was bored, and that was dangerous. If he had nothing else to do, and he couldn't play around like usual - _because his friends were imprisoned and that's **all** his fault he was **useless** at protecting them_\- then the only other thing he could do was sleep, and Dream wanted to avoid sleep as much as possible.

He talked with a few of the Cultists at first, surprised by how excited a few of them had been to see him. They'd asked about his Manhunt series, his favorite tricks and parts, if he discussed strategies with his Player before recordings, what games he liked best in Hypixel; there was a genuine conversation with actual fans of him and his Player. Why were they Cultists? Why did he have fans that were Cultists?

He asked and listened as the Cultists described living in a fugue state of hopelessness and misery, a nihilistic view of their own lives being meaningless after living through the Viral Wars and witnessing the sacrifices made, both voluntary and not, until they were picked up by Anarchic Cultists and given a goal to work towards as a distraction.

They didn't have dreams of their own to live for.

"Oh, but when my Player is happy and full of positivity, it passes through the soul-link to me and I feel better!" one of the Cultist scouts told him brightly. "Like right now! Talking to you, I'm super happy! My Player loves watching yours, and she can kinda get the feeling of being connected to both of you because I'm talking with you and can see you! So it passes from me to her and she gets happier and that passes back to me and it's, like, whoa! The world's not so bad if someone like you is there. And you were in Sky Army, so you've seen all the crap that the world has while on your missions and stuff, but you still manage to smile and make wonderful things with your Player!"

"Yeah! If _you_ can still smile, then maybe _we_ can find something in this world to smile about too," another Cultist agreed from his perch on a barrel.

"Except I'm being taken to get turned into Herobrine or whatever's going on," Dream told them bluntly and the smiles faltered, the Cultists looking at one another before looking down at their own hands.

"..Yeah, that's.. sorry," they mumbled in apology, and one picked at their red neckerchief with a faintly doubtful look on their face.

The dolphins broke away, swimming off to chase fish among colorful coral, and Dream lifted a hand to them as a wave goodbye before sighing and propping his face on it, once again bored. In a short time, another Avatar joined him at the banister, leaning onto it with their arms folded onto the wood. Dream glanced aside, too much in a low mood to bother facing the newcomer fully and only noting the skin wearing clothes in shades of black, blue, and a bright green color that looked very much like his own.

"Took a while to find you," the other Avatar greeted politely. Dream huffed, waving his free hand around listlessly.

"We're stuck on a ship, not like I can go anywhere else with my friends in cages or comas," he returned drily. He'd already spent his visiting time with them anyway, soaking in their presence and holding contact with them via shoulders and foreheads for as much as he could, wondering when would be the last he'd have them. They'd been separated out into individual cells at least, so they had more room to walk around and sleep, though BadBoyHalo pointed out that Kothra had been by often, too, mostly to talk to Technoblade and offer some sort of arrangement that Techno politely refused each time it was brought up.

Dream tried to ask Fundy about the status of his backup Core File, only to feel his heart sink when the fox Avatar crumpled and apologized repeatedly for letting it go missing. He couldn't even remember how it had vanished; one moment the little blob was perched on his shoulder as he closed the passage to his hilltop lab when he, Ph1LzA, and Wilbur left it and the shadow of an unfamiliar Avatar rose up behind him, and then he was facing the direction of where the shadow came from with no memory of what had happened, and the little Core File was gone. It had to have been stolen, but Fundy couldn't remember anything between the two points of time. He checked his own files for clues, but those had been removed somehow, painlessly.

That had been a serious blow to Dream's plans, stripping away all strategies to just one.

"What do you need?" the other Avatar asked suddenly, a strangely serious weight to the words that prodded at Dream. He shook off the odd feeling, tracing the grain of the wood banister with a fingertip.

"I dunno. A way to avoid losing myself to Herobrine permanently?" he asked with a scornful laugh, short and bitter.

The two Avatars stood in silence side by side, gazing out at the clear sea and orange sky, burning colors of the setting sun. Eventually, the stranger tapped their hands against the banister in a little melody. Dream recognized it immediately, the opening notes of the Manhunt speedrun music.

"I'll see what I can do," the other Avatar replied and left him be, walking away. Dream blinked, puzzled by the strange answer, and looked over to see who it was that had talked to him. He needed to ask for some sort of time-waster anyway.

Ph1LzA stood in front of him, a near-panicked expression on his face that quickly fell to relief as he sighed. "Oh, good god, Dream, don't fucking scare me like that again," the older man said. "Had me out here yelling your name for ten minutes, looking just like Fundy did back at the base of his hill. What the fuck is going on that's doing that to people?"

"What?" Dream asked, looking around and seeing that the sun had set, the stars and moon were out. When had **that** happened?! " **What**. _Whaaaat?_ "

\---

An attempt to meditate while sitting in bed ended up turning to actual sleep. On the one hand, that was good, Dream needed rest and it would keep the Phantoms from stalking him later. On the other, though, Herobrine.. just Herobrine.

The End dimension had been mostly converted to Nether, the Void sky a deep crimson with splotches of the familiar static-speckled black. Milk white End stone had become pale scarlet Netherrack, with sickly Crimson trees drooping pallid wart blocks overhead, their shroom lights dim and barely glowing. Thin streams of lava coursed over the island and flowed over the edge, casting orange light onto the glistening black obsidian pillars that still stretched into the Void.

Dream sat on the edge of the bedrock fountain, the basin now full of bubbling lava. The heat was just shy of uncomfortable at his back as he looked out at the converted dimension through his mask. It was having difficulty keeping track of Herobrine, who teleported randomly among the makeshift Crimson Forest. He glared at the last known location and went back to what he was doing.

He held out his hands to the weakly-colored Netherrack, the mask targeting it and displaying its data directly to him, flickering code shimmering over it as he reviewed the glitching block data and tags. Once he identified where the data was changed, and badly done, Dream wrote out the correct code in his thoughts and tried to 'push' the correct block data onto the glitchy lines. He focused, throwing as much of his thought processes towards it as he could spare.

So many lines of thought...

So many masks...

So many emotions juggling and jumping for attention...

Whatever of his mind wasn't handling all that went to trying to force the code rewrite without being in a Viral state.

"Come on. Please.. please.. please.. _please_!" Dream muttered under his breath, willing the change to happen. Another flicker, and then suddenly there was a gleam of bright green, a feeling of something snapping into place, and Dream was left staring at a restored milk white End stone in the midst of all the pale red Netherrack, breathing hard from the effort of coding it back to normal. Stunned, he could only blink at it a few times before a wide smile broke over his face and he laughed. "I did it! _I did it!_ Yeeeesssss!" he cheered triumphantly.

And then he was hit from behind, thrown forward and slammed onto the ground painfully, the wind shoved out of his lungs as Herobrine pressed down on him with an angry snarl. Knee to his back, the taller Avatar's weight bore down on Dream and he clawed at the Netherrack to try and pull himself free. Hands pinned down his wrists but much of the weight was lifted, letting him breathe again. He sucked in air greedily and ended up coughing out the bits of Netherrack and Nether vegetation he'd accidentally inhaled.

"Get off me!" he yelled hoarsely, struggling to free his wrists. One arm was yanked roughly back and Dream twisted in place with it, kicking and thrashing wildly to try and get loose as Herobrine fought to keep him pinned in place.

 _"This domain is **mine**! You have no power here! Have I not **shown** you this enough?! Have I not **taught** you this enough?!"_ the Virus growled, fighting to bring both wrists together. Dream pulled up his legs, then slammed the heels of both boots together up into Herobrine's jaw, knocking Him off balance with the surprise attack.

"I **said** , get **off** of me!" he snapped back, scrambling to his feet and running into the forest, tapping his clasp to pull the cloak into a simple green cord holding the shimmering circle around his neck. While his clothes still stood out against the Crimson Forest, the bright lime green was too much of a giveaway and had too much fabric flowing freely that could be grabbed or caught on something.

He could hear Herobrine roaring in a fury some distance behind him. Just a little while, just until he woke up naturally; Dream crouched down behind the base of a tree, breathing hard and wincing in pain. There was definitely going to be a bruise on his back in the morning. He checked his wrists, feeling out the tenderness and flinching at the raw pain of his gloves rubbing even lightly against his skin. Yeah, that was going to show on his physical body too. Ph1LzA was going to be pissed.

Had Sky suffered through this, too, so long ago? Dream felt a flash of rage on behalf of the older Avatar. Whoever programmed this asshole Virus, he hoped they got their ass kicked soundly for it.

There was no further sound from Herobrine, but Dream held still and listened for a few moments longer before turning around to start punching the tree and gather its wood. He was too exposed on the surface, his green clothes standing out against all the crimson. He took down a few logs, flicked open his inventory and crafted them all into planks. From those he made a crafting table and some sticks, throwing the table down to hastily create a set of wooden tools before recollecting the table. He held the wooden pick in his hands, concentrating on the item data and tags the mask displayed to force it to accept the coding written in his mind. A flicker of green after what felt like forever, and Dream quickly mined down with his new netherite pick, plugging the hole after him with the Netherrack first, then the End stone.

Deeper he dug, until he turned and began mining horizontally, filling the spaces behind him as he moved to cover his path. Now and then he'd pause and listen, tracking the sound of lava, of the wind pushing around brittle vines, of faint, faint footsteps on nyilium. After a bit more tunneling, Dream carved out a small room for himself and placed the crafting table back down again, resting his back against it with a wince as he sat on the ground, flicking the pickaxe away into his hotbar.

As battered as he'll likely wake up being, this was still a productive visit to.. whatever this place was, some sort of inner world? His mental domain? Dream held up one of the wooden plank blocks in his hand, studying it thoughtfully. He had been able to change items from one state to another in the same type, like the wooden pickaxe to the netherite one. His Viral states could not only do that much easier, but change the code to the point where an item became an entirely different one; like what George said happened to his fully enchanted netherite sword, which Dream had turned into a simple, basic stick after grabbing the blade in his hand.

"In this video, I coded it so that anything I touch can become something else using just my force of will," he recited the opening line of the Minecraft challenge script with his own twist and smiled, laughing softly as he juggled the little block of wood in his hand. "Interesting. I might be able to use this in the future."

A faint sound above him caught his attention, and Dream flicked his hand to the wooden axe, exerting that force over it to change the code to a netherite one. He got to his feet, listening carefully and ready to attack at the first good opportunity.

He didn't get one.

The ceiling burst downward and out as Herobrine slammed through the layers of End stone, breaking through the blocks and passing by the little room. The shockwave of the multiple impacts shoved Dream backwards, tripping him over the crafting table and back down to the ground again. "Oh! Shit! What?!" He cringed in pain from his awkward position, legs dangling over the top of the table as he rubbed his head gingerly. When nothing else seemed to happen, Dream gathered himself up and stood unsteadily, still gripping his axe.

He approached the hole warily, leaning over to look into it. The crimson-tainted Void stretched out far below; had Herobrine crashed down all the way to it? Dream smirked at the thought, a soft chuckle escaping him as he flicked to the pickaxe. He turned, ready to tunnel to another part of the End island to remake his room, only to fall still at the Virus standing there, scowling at him.

"Oh, come **on**! Just leave me alone!" the smaller Avatar yelled, jumping backwards in an attempt to escape via the tunnel to the Void. Herobrine just reached out, grabbing the front of his shirt and holding him over the chasm. Dream flicked his hand to the axe and slammed the blade into His arm, forcing Him to let go.

The sound of Herobrine's roar of injury and rage followed Dream into the Void.

\---

The ship docked at what looked like a small fishing village on the tip of a large jungle biome island. Another caravan of carts and wagons waited for the travelers, constructed of crimson wood and Nether brick. Dream looked out the window of the guest room on the ship, watching as supplies were moved from the ship and some of the village's shops to the carts. This would be the final transition of transport, as far as he knew. The caravan would head to whatever base of operations the Cultists had from this point on; Herobrine's Mansion had been located and destroyed shortly after the end of the Viral Wars, with many of the Infected that had been stationed there killed to remove them from Minecraftia entirely.

That had been the way of the single life system, before Sky had bargained with the world to create the resurrection penalty system, allowing levels and experience points to be paid out in the event of a death.

His back twitched in pain and Dream hissed in discomfort, looking over his shoulder at Ph1LzA. "Could you take it a _little_ easier on me? _Please?!_ " he grumbled. As he had known, the older man had indeed been furious with the bruise, discovered when Dream couldn't move easily when just his shirt touching against it caused pain. Now he sat on the bed, shirt and undershirt off and folded beside him, while Ph1LzA carefully bandaged his torso to hold protective padding against the bruise, a lingering healing potion applied to it to start the process of recovery.

"Maybe if I didn't have to keep waking up to find signs of someone physically abusing my friend while I'm dead to the world in sleep, I'd be a lot less stressed!" the older man groused, "I'm trying to be as gentle as I can here, okay? You won't even tell me who's been doing this to you so I can kick their ass!"

"You'll probably find out soon enough, and then you can kick His ass all you want," Dream muttered, leaning forward to prop his elbows onto his knees and rest his chin on his hands. Another twitch of pain.

"Stop fucking moving! I'm trying to make this hold without being too tight on you. You still need to breathe, after all," Ph1LzA pointed out gruffly. He tied off the ends of the bandaging and sat back with a sigh. "There, done. Now let me look at your face; I see that puffiness making your mask sit funny."

"It's fine, Phil," Dream told him, waving it off as he carefully redressed. "We should get ready to go. They're moving George and Sapnap and the others and I need to let them see me before they try something dumb like stage a revolt while still tied up." He got up with Ph1LzA's help, looking at the door to the room when it opened to allow the Cultist medics in, stretcher ready to carry Sky out between them. "Do you have any idea what I did to him?" Dream asked softly, watching the silent Butter King be transferred onto the stretcher.

"Dunno, really. Just before I blacked out in the battle at the Capital, I saw those tentacles coming up at me to stop me from hitting the ground and they were gold colored. Be better to ask Techno or Fundy," the older man replied as the two moved to follow the medics out of the room, joined by Kothra as he walked beside them as an escort.

The procession moved through the village to the caravan. A few villagers closed themselves up in their homes, but the few Avatars that lived there with them bore red neckerchiefs with diamond clips and those watched the stream of people passing through with excitement. Dream took in their expressions of hope and joy, recalling the conversation he had with the scouts. Was that hope and joy for the coming destruction? Was this them eagerly awaiting Herobrine's bringing of death upon them all?

Wasn't there another way? Couldn't he give them new hope? New dreams?

 _"Closet full of secrets and skeletons, awakes but nothing's true. I used to own a castle, now it's boxes that I have to move,"_ Dream sang softly, recalling the song Sky had used to revitalize his will to live and fight on, _"Right here in the darkness, there's nothing left for me to do. It's easier to run away but today.. today we got to cast the shadows out from sight..."_ Some of the Cultists watching the procession snapped their eyes to him, surprised looks on their faces.

For a moment, something else flickered in their eyes, thin streaks of lime green opening on the red of their neckerchiefs. But Kothra nudged Dream's shoulder, halting the song, and the moment was broken.

The caravan loaded up and both Dream and Ph1LzA took seats on the lead wagon, the green-clad Avatar waving at the prison wagon being drawn alongside them to calm down his friends still locked within. Sapnap had a mulish expression on his face, along with a black eye from trying to start a fight with a Cultist guard. He had backed down when George was threatened in retaliation. Dream frowned thoughtfully, adjusting plans in the back of his mind.

"I see that look on your mask, you schemer," Ph1LzA commented quietly, stretching out his legs in his seat. "Planning a way for us to escape?"

"Something like that," Dream replied, tapping the knuckles of one hand against the arm of his seat as he turned over the seedling idea in his head, tracing the potential outcomes, possibilities, probabilities as he tried to fit it into his planning. "Gonna have to talk to someone about it first."

\---

The landscape was different this time. Dream recognized the gold mine that was where Herobrine had shown him Sky-of-the-past in his broken and defeated state. It was larger now, decorated with lanterns on a makeshift chandelier of iron bars and glowstone lamps along with the numerous blocks of gold and gold ore. There was a dais of gold blocks and blue carpet in the center of the open room of the mine, with a golden throne resting on it.

SkythekidRS sat on that throne, slumped back against it while the magenta tentacles hovered around him, spread out from the light that surrounded his body in a soft aura.

"What the hell?" Dream muttered and jumped in place when Herobrine appeared beside him.

 _"Witness the Corruption you brought upon him,"_ the Virus told him with a mean smile, gesturing at Sky. The speedrunner stared at Him in disbelief before running from Him, heading for the dais. Had He somehow pulled Dream into Sky's 'mental plane'? It would make sense if Herobrine could do that; both he and Sky had been heavily affected by Herobrine's code burying itself in their bodies. There may have been a link between them because of that.

A link between him and Sky, shared because of the Herobrine code...

His steps slowed as he drew close to the dais, and Dream climbed up onto it, mouth opening in shock to see a copy of his own smiling face mask covering Sky's face. The tentacles bent towards him, as though waiting for a command. He reached up to one, holding his hand palm up, and it bent further to rest there, allowing him to access the code that went into their creation.

Flashes of memory rose to the surface as data scrolled up in the mask's view. Golden light wrapping around him, putting hands to the tentacles that were holding him and bringing him closer to the ground, seeking out the coding that was the Sky Virus that sparked the Viral Rage and used the power brought in from the soul-link.

Someone's voice. _"Your immunity is only for the base Herobrine Virus and the Squid Virus upgrade."_ Anything after, Sky couldn't protect himself against.

The Sky Virus code was revealed.. and Dream remembered tearing into it, overwriting it with his own Dream Virus, slaving the Viral state, and Sky with it, to himself, then issuing the command to stand down until further orders could be given.

The mask on Sky's face. The magenta light of Viral Rage. The fatal flaw in Sky's perfect immunity.

"I'm sorry," Dream murmured, the mask highlighting the segment of code in Sky's body that mirrored his own. "This should never have happened." He picked out the line that dictated color and flipped it back to the value in his memory. Gold spread out from the brunet, changing the color of the magenta aura back and spreading in a wave up to the tentacles. Dream read over the section carefully, and spotted an extra line inserted in the code; _Primary allegiance value set to: Avatar Dream_. He deleted that, watching as the mask over Sky's face dissolved into pixel dust and blew away, leaving the brunet's sleeping expression exposed. "Still got things to fix, but this is a good start," Dream told himself, pulling away from the dais. "Bye, Sky."

He headed back to Herobrine, who only stared impassively at him, expression unreadable. "I have a deal I want to make with you," Dream told him, folding his arms over his chest as he walked past. A ripple of power, and both he and the Virus were back in the half-End, half-Nether landscape that still struggled with itself, Endermen ripping down Crimson trees and throwing the blocks over the edge into the Void.

 _"You, bargain with me? You have nothing to use as leverage. Or do you need another reminder of your position here?"_ Herobrine told him condescendingly. Dream only spun around to walk backwards in front of Him, a wide grin on his face.

"Now, now, I think you'll _like_ this deal. I get something, you get something, win-win! Hear me out, it's not like I can do anything else here but talk to you," he cooed, holding up his hands placatingly. Herobrine narrowed His eyes but gave a slight tilt of His head that Dream took to mean he could continue. His smile dimmed to a more serious expression. "I know we're on our way to the Nether, that's your territory after all. But my friends who were captured with me at Sky Capital are being taken there too. They don't have anything to do with what's going on with you, me, and the Cultists." Dream gestured out to empty air, as though guessing at the direction of the prison wagon from within his own mind. "I'd like to ask you to direct your followers into letting my friends go safely once we reach your base, to have passage through another Nether portal back to the Overworld, and tell them not to come back to rescue me in any way. I'll probably tell them that last part myself but.. details." He counted off names on his fingers, looking directly up at the Virus, "That's George, Sapnap, Bad, Technoblade, Philza, Wilbur, Fundy, Setosorcerer, Deadlox, and SkythekidRS; all of them are to be allowed to return to the Overworld safely, unharmed, not Infected or Corrupted."

 _"That is a **very** big demand you make, when you include my former host, the Commander of Sky Army,"_ Herobrine pointed out.

"Sky Army is splintered and weakened and currently no longer under Sky's control. He's no threat to you anymore," Dream shot back, "He's a friend and I don't want him to suffer being around you again."

 _"When I am revived, they'll all die anyway; what does it matter if they fall now or later?"_ Herobrine pressed and the blonde shrugged.

"I want to give them as much time as I can to be free. It's the best I can do for them as I am now," he returned.

 _"And what do I get for letting hard-won prizes go free?"_ Herobrine asked coldly and Dream smiled, gesturing to himself as if he were on display.

"Me. My complete and willing surrender. I've been fighting against you here, night after night, being an asshole and a pain to deal with, but if you agree to this?" he replied, stepping forward, "Then I stop fighting. You once told me I'd throw away the artifacts to spare my friends." Dream pulled the mask from his face, unhooked the clasp and lime green cloak from around his neck, then held both objects out and away from himself at arm's reach, looking up at the Virus seriously. "This is me, throwing them aside, if you let them go free."

Herobrine only studied him in silence, incredulosity radiating from Him as He narrowed His gaze. Time stretched on, but neither of them moved or broke eye contact. Eventually, Herobrine looked past him, taking in the sight of the altered landscape. The Endermen that had previously been tearing down the Nether blocks and pieces now stood idle under the canopies of Crimson trees. Dream continued waiting - _patience, don't waste the opportunity_ \- as Herobrine shifted His focus back to him.

The Virus moved suddenly, hands around Dream's throat and pressing in, a reminder of before - _twist to the side, snap, black_ -. He gave a small gasp, trying to suck in air, but he held himself still, kept the artifacts out and away, kept his gaze on Herobrine as he purposely leaned into the grip. "Deal?" he rasped through the fresh bruising on his neck.

Whatever conditions or tests Herobrine was looking for must have been satisfied, as the Virus nodded. _"Deal. The Avatars you named will be released safely to the Overworld once I have assumed control of your body, and in exchange you give me that control willingly when we reach the Nether Castle,"_ Herobrine agreed. _"No tricks to get out of this one, little speedrunner. I've been here in your mind since the start."_

"No, no tricks. I'm choosing to surrender, of my own will," Dream returned firmly, and let the artifacts slip from his fingers.

\---

The caravan made good time traveling through the jungle on well-maintained roads of path blocks and mossy stone brick, glowstone lamps resting on stone pillars at regular intervals to light the way and hold back hostile mobs. Humidity and heat hung heavy over the Avatars, making several of them wilt as they kept moving forward.

Ph1LzA fanned himself off with his bucket hat, looking up at the canopy of green that shielded them from the sun. "I'm really glad we didn't involve the younguns in this. This business of war isn't a place for minor Avatars." Dream grunted tiredly beside him and the older man shifted to fan cooler air at him. "How're you holding up? Need that bandage to be changed?"

Another day, another instance of the older man looking furious with the bruises around Dream's neck and the way the little blonde simply shrugged it off. "It's fine. Doesn't hurt as much as the last time," Dream told him and looked aside at the sound of roaring water. "Is that.. a waterfall?" he asked in surprise, leaning forward as the caravan emerged from the thicker part of the jungle and began turning to head down a steep cliff, following a path cut in an incline that hugged the cliffside.

In the distance, embedded into the massive crater in the biome, a giant waterfall cascaded down in front of a massive ring of polished blackstone and obsidian. At the base of the waterfall was an encampment protecting what looked to be a redstone contraption built into the ring. Dream whistled in impressed appreciation for the build as Ph1LzA gaped at it.

"That fucking massive thing's a giant fucking Nether Portal!" he exclaimed, pointing at the encampment, eyes wide. "I've seen something like that in one of Awesam's blueprints; it's a redstone machine that can activate and deactivate Nether Portals on command!"

As the caravan continued down the incline towards the massive black ring, a flash of fireworks shot up from them; Dream and Ph1LzA looked back to see Kothra holding a crossbow in his hands, gazing up at the burst of red color in the sky. The two blondes blinked, then looked back at the encampment to see an answering burst of red over it. A line of redstone signals shot up in a line from the bottom of the waterfall's lagoon to the top of the cliff, and slowly the water began to subside, the curtain of water being drawn back to reveal the massive gate in its full glory.

There was another burst of redstone signal, then a flash of purple light as the Portal was lit, casting an ominous glow over the crater and cliffs. The Avatars in the prison wagon crowded into wherever they could to see the spectacle, purple light playing over their fearful expressions. Dream took in their faces and sighed softly, pulling away to face the massive portal as the caravan drew ever closer to it.

"Dream, if ever there was a time for you to pull one of those crazy Manhunt strats to get us out of this, _now_ would be a good one," Ph1LzA said cautiously, reaching aside to rest a hand on the arm of Dream's chair rather than on his arm directly. "If we go through that, we're done. We don't have any idea what's on the other side of that portal and we'll lose avenues of escape. Tell me you got some trick up your sleeve."

"I don't," Dream replied flatly. "I'm not escaping. I already surrendered." Ph1LzA whipped his head around to stare at him, stunned.

"Whaaat the fuck? What do you **mean** , you surrendered?! What the fuck does **that** mean?!" he demanded frantically, the wall of portal light spread behind him as he stood before the speedrunner. "Dream, what the fuck does that **mean**?!"

 _"I take a road of my own making, on a journey, no returning,"_ Dream sang out and offered a small, apologetic smile. "Sorry, Phil, I made a deal to help you and our friends get out of this. I have to pay my part." He sat back in his seat and looked up at the wall of light, anything to escape the crushing look of betrayal on the other man's face as the caravan passed through to the other side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The [song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=un5jZH5n-qE) Dream uses against Herobrine is a land affecting one, creating a purified zone 200 blocks in diameter under a barrier that prevents Herobrine from entering the area and applies a God Apple effect on all Avatars within the field; the barrier and effect only stays up as long as the singer remains standing on a single block to act as the 'anchor', if they move off the block, the protection falls.
> 
> Song: This is My Biome by BebopVox
> 
> On the other side, [Herobrine's song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlQ2gXjAkHk) is able to drain fighting spirit and energy from Avatars as well as call in a fog of war to hide His movements. It's His only song so He increases its strength by using Sky's voice. He would use Dream's voice against him, but He had His reasons to use Sky's voice.
> 
> Song: Have You Seen The Herobrine? by BrightGlowstone


	30. 40. Red

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the captive Avatars are moved into the Nether Castle, Dream makes final preparations before the inevitable happens, revealing his ability to manipulate and modify Avatar code directly while in Viral state.

40\. Red

The caravan emerged in the Nether through an equally massive portal of obsidian and polished blackstone, resting on a base of blackstone brick and Nether brick. Stone brick wound through it to form a road that cut through a dense Crimson forest. Overhead were flat outcroppings of Netherrack staggered and shaped to hold fortifications for defending the giant portal, with walls for archers to hide behind and small towers for watchmen to stand in and observe their surroundings. Lava streamed down from above at random points, left to pool in specially made basins to contain the flow and use them as environmental light sources. The occasional Ghast drifted too close and was immediately set upon by archers, with Cultist scouts dashing out after to scoop up the drops before they fell into the ocean of lava.

The captive Avatars riding along in the caravan looked around in awe at the constructed walls and gates as the procession headed on into the forest. The Illagers that had traveled with them returned to the Overworld via the giant portal, replaced by Piglins that now served as the vanguard for the rest of the journey. For the Cultists, travel had been smooth and they were giddy with their victory bringing them that much closer to their goal; reverting all Awakened Avatars to their lifeless state to escape their nihilistic views on life.

"For being a place of doom and gloom where we're probably going to end up getting brutally murdered, I gotta admit these builds are fucking amazing," Ph1LzA commented, one hand resting on his hat as he craned his head back to follow the structures high above. Dream looked around with him, nodding slowly.

"It's nice enough, but I'm probably going to add Crimson forests to my list of 'things that I need therapy for' if I get through this," he agreed and the older Avatar looked at him askance.

"'If'?" he asked in a low voice, eyes narrowing. Dream managed another sardonic smile, gesturing with his fingers as though to brush the question away.

A hollow thump sounded in the wagon and the two blondes looked at each other in surprise before looking back in the direction of the sound; the guest room they used, with Sky still within. Dream moved from the chair towards it, as Kothra looked down in suspicion and jumped over the second level rail to follow him.

Inside the room, Sky was found sprawled on the floor, groaning in discomfort as he struggled to get to all fours. Dream ran to his side, helping him roll over and sit up as Kothra entered the room, trident in hand.

"He's awake and no longer in Viral state? Was this your doing?" the spymaster demanded. Dream nodded with a glare, silently daring him to do something about it. "He needs to be bound and imprisoned like the others, if he's recovered."

"I can barely move, how the fuck am I a threat to you?" Sky growled, leaning heavily onto the speedrunner as Dream rose from the floor, hauling him up alongside him.

"You're you, the longest running pain in the ass for the Cultists and Squid Army for years," Kothra returned snidely.

"Hey," Dream chimed in flatly, "I made a deal. Just apply the same conditions for Philza to Sky. I promise he won't do anything if I ask." He shot a look at the brunet. "Right? No fighting against the Cultists, no trying to escape, no trying to break anyone out or have me leave, no using Sysop commands."

Sky just stared at him in disbelief, then slowly narrowed his eyes as he searched the blonde's masked face for some hint of something. "I'm not Sysop anymore, remember? I transferred the rank and power to Deadlox. I'm confined to Survival mode, just like the rest of you," he pointed out, lifting his head with a grimace as Kothra poked the tip of the trident to his neck threateningly.

"You're making a lot of demands for privileges for these two, Dream," the spymaster growled. "For their sake, you'd do well to hold to your end of the bargain with Lord Herobrine." With that, he flicked the trident away and left the room. There was silence for a few moments and then Sky turned to give the little speedrunner a lidded gaze, hazel eyes gleaming gold briefly.

"What did you **do**?"

Ph1LzA helped Dream move Sky to the seats outside the room, where a third one had been added sometime during Dream explaining the bulk of the journey to the Nether. He kept his nightly confrontations to himself but had the feeling the brunet was already aware of them, lending weight to Dream's suspicions that he had also experienced those mental confrontations. Through it all, Sky remained quiet, a myriad of emotions struggling to show on his face before finally settling on resignation.

The three of them sat in their seats as the caravan moved out of the forest and into a strange village of Crimson and Warped wood homes, Piglins moving about and conducting their business. The road passed through and headed on into the distance towards a large castle of blackstone, obsidian, and Nether brick, lava making the stained glass windows gleam colorfully.

"Didn't I say, as one of the first things I tried to teach you, not to bargain with your life? Not to make the same mistakes I did?" Sky finally asked in irritation, arms folded over his chest. Dream winced, then shook it off.

"I'm not you," he replied coolly. "You see a mistake; **I** see an opportunity."

The caravan pulled into a large chamber in the castle. Kothra leaped off the wagon, issuing orders rapidly to Cultists that swarmed around them. Supplies were unloaded, the horses and Ravagers were unharnessed and led away, and the prison wagon was opened to let the prisoners disembark.

Dream watched as his friends hopped down, one after another, each one looking hopeless even as they turned their faces up to him expectantly. He only shook his head and winced at the flashes of horror in their expression.

"You're not even gonna _try_ , man?!" Sapnap yelled up at him, stepping forward as a Cultist guard grabbed his arm to hold him back. "Minecraft Manhunts hundreds of times, this one is the most important of all, and you're not even going to try and wiggle out of this trap?!" He shook his head, "If it's because of us, then don't worry! We'll take ourselves out!" The ravenet whipped his head around to yell at the Cultists. "Hey! Kill me! Right now! Do it or you're dog water!"

None of the red-caped Avatars moved, just stared at him, then looked up at Dream. George looked around in confusion, then followed their gaze along with the rest of the captive Avatars.

"They're not going to hurt any of you because I made a bargain with Herobrine. You think I wouldn't use any advantage I could get to make sure you'd all be safe?" Dream replied coldly. He tapped the mask to put it away into the goggles, then lifted those onto his head, glaring down at Sapnap. "Be grateful for it. Now shut up and follow the Cultists to your cells until the ceremony starts."

"Dream!" George cried in alarm, but the blonde only turned his back on them while the guards tugged them all along.

"Coward! _Coward!_ I'm going to kick your ass after all this, Dream! You were supposed to run, goddammit! You're a speedrunner!" Sapnap kept yelling as he was dragged away by a pair of guards. "What the fuck happened to you being a genius at escaping and setting up tricks and traps?!"

Ph1LzA studied Dream's expression from where he stood by the chairs, Sky turning in the seat to look at him as well. The older blonde had a solemn look, hands tucked into his sleeves. "You're trying to make it hurt less for them by making them mad at you," he said quietly. "That's a scuffed move, Dream."

"Kinda hard to own your mistakes, when they're basically mine," Sky added flatly.

"You don't actually know me, so you don't have the right to judge me," Dream shot back in frustration, eyes flickering magenta as he gripped his head in both hands. "I know what I'm doing! Just trust me, for fuck's sake!"

"Do you have an exit strategy at all?" the brunet asked as he got out of his chair and joined Ph1LzA's side, head tilted in curiosity.

"Nope," Dream replied with an unnaturally bright smile, "But that's what DreamXD is for."

\---

The quarters Dream, Ph1LzA, and Sky were led to was spacious and extravagantly decorated, several rooms joined together. Guards remained stationed outside as the three drifted through each of the rooms then reconvened in the sitting room, settling on the sofas and picking at the basket of fruit decorating the table.

"That's your plan, then," Sky muttered around his bite of apple, looking down at the fruit in his hands, "Just let yourself die to Herobrine and your Player switches soul-links to the alt?" He flicked his gaze up to Dream with a grim expression. "You forgot Sapphira stole a copy of your Core File; if you die and your Player logs in to the Dream account, he'll link to that copy instead. Do you understand what that would mean?" At Dream's stunned expression, Sky nodded, "Your Player ends up under her control, even if indirectly. Didn't you consider him in this plan? Or are you just that arrogant and selfish?"

"I am TRYING my BEST!" Dream yelled back, jumping to his feet, " _Maaaaybe_ , if the one Avatar that could hold on to Core Files and transfer them back after a Herobrine takeover wasn't **dead** , I'd have an exit plan!"

"Dream! That's too far!" Ph1LzA snapped in shock as Sky put the apple down and stood up, "What the fuck's gotten into you?"

"I'm going to another room and staying away, because right now, I'm finding it very hard to not go Feral on you," the brunet said as calmly as he could, golden eyes blazing in contrast to the bright magenta of Dream's own. He took a deep breath, then turned and walked out, blue cape snapping in the air with the sharpness of his movement.

There was a tense silence after the Butter King left that lasted for a few moments, broken by Dream cursing under his breath and gripping his hair. "Yeah, that was incredibly scuffed," Ph1LzA told him flatly, sitting back and folding his arms over his chest. "Didn't he tell you about that Avatar?"

"He did, and believe me, I feel like the biggest dick right now," Dream sighed, letting his hands and shoulders drop. "Hell of a low blow."

"Look, Dream, I know you get all violently protective of George, Sapnap, and BadBoyHalo, and above all for Clay, but you don't turn that against friends who are just trying to help you see where there's other repercussions for the shit you're about to do," Ph1LzA pointed out, nodding once in satisfaction when Dream quietly agreed with a nod of his own, "Give Sky a little while to cool his heels, then go apologize. Be a big boy, Dream." He gestured at the speedrunner, "So, exit plan. Not gonna be just up and dying, that's stupid and I don't believe you to be a stupid man. You bargained yourself into something, why not tell us what it is and maybe we can think of a way out of it?"

"Can't. That's not how this works," Dream replied, twirling a finger towards himself. "You've seen the Manhunts." Ph1LzA gave him an unimpressed look, then threw up his hands with an exasperated sigh.

"Scuffed, both of you. Is this shit a Herobrine Anti-Viral Avatar thing? Gonna have to be dealing with this on top of the other shit we do with our Players in the upper servers?" he complained, "Mate..."

The clocks on the walls of the rooms had a strange sheen to them that wasn't the immunity aura. Dream eyed them suspiciously, unsure if he was supposed to clean them or if he could. They didn't shine red in his mask's vision like the Herobrine Virus infection did. He tapped at it with a fingernail, quick and hesitant, and felt only small sparks of discomfort from the contact. After Ph1LzA lectured him, the older Avatar headed to the master bathroom to make use of the place, leaving Dream alone to find something to do to occupy himself. There were books in the shelves decorating the sitting room and he tried reading one but distracted himself from moving past the same paragraph for several minutes because of the sheen on the clocks catching his attention. So he gave up on the book in favor of poking at the clocks.

"I wouldn't touch those too much. They're crafted with Squid Virus infected butter ingots," Sky's voice said dully and Dream turned around in surprise, blinking at the sight of the brunet standing outside of the study he'd retreated into some time ago. "Can't purify them, we need Deadlox for that and he's in one of those prison cells in the lower floors," he clarified.

"I'm sorry," Dream blurted out and winced at the delivery when Sky raised an eyebrow at him, "What I said before.. about your friend.. that was cruel of me and I.. I'm sorry for.. for saying what I did." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously as he stammered on, "I get, like, super protective of Clay.. my Player.. and I lashed out at you, which I totally shouldn't have because.. because you're my friend and I know, I know it's not _you_ threatening him, I shouldn't have taken your words like they were a threat, cuz they're not, you were looking out for him cuz you have experience in this sort of thing and I should have realized that, not slap you with something that would really, _really_ hurt and.. and I'm really sorry for hurting you like that."

Sky pursed his mouth tightly, inhaled deeply, then exhaled slowly, tapping his fingertips together in steady rhythm. "I appreciate the apology and you recognizing that what you said hurt, because it **did** ," he replied carefully. "Don't do that again; he was a good friend who didn't deserve to die the way he did and I really don't like him being used as a weapon even now." Dream nodded and the brunet twitched the corners of his mouth up into the barest semblance of a smile. "I can't say 'we're good' on that just yet, but I'm still your friend and I still want to help you get out of this mess. Okay?"

"Okay," Dream said and tapped one foot against the floor to burn off excess nervous energy. "About that.. there's something else I need to say but let me do something first." Sky gave him a puzzled look, which the blonde ignored in favor of taking a deep breath and pulling up all the feelings of despair and fear he'd gathered from the nightly confrontations with Herobrine, layered with the resignation from the bargain he'd made.

Weave the fear and sorrow together, hold it in place, slip the mask on to shield the truth.

"What the hell? What did you do?" Sky asked in confusion and alarm as the white smiley-face mask pixelated into place over Dream's face, hiding his expression from view.

"What do you remember when you caught me back at Sky Capital, during my time in the Feral state? I only have a few snippets of that moment but not much else," Dream asked instead, disregarding the brunet's questions. Sky blinked at the sudden topic shift before thinking it over.

"You grabbed onto my tentacles, and it felt like you were accessing something in me somehow.. and then there was this feeling of something being pulled out of me but being replaced in almost the same instant, and then everything just went black," he recalled cautiously. "Next thing I knew, I was awake in that caravan and completely drained of energy. I could barely move, which I found out when I tried to get up and fell off that makeshift bed."

Dream turned that over in his head; not enough information. "The perfect immunity you said you have.. does anyone else have it?" he asked. Sky wasn't the only Anti-Viral Avatar after all.

"Yeah, Deadlox does. When we uploaded the scraps of code within us that came from our Viral counterparts into the Artifacts, our non-malevolent versions upgraded to refuse re-infection from those strains. I can't be infected by the original Herobrine Virus code, and Deadlox can't be infected by the Squid Virus, and both of us can't be touched by the version of Herobrine that has the Squid Virus included," Sky explained and squinted at Dream suspiciously. "Why ask?"

"Making some adjustments," Dream replied vaguely, looking past him as he searched his own memory for anything else he could use. The brunet rolled his eyes, shifting his weight to one leg.

"What did you replace in me anyway? If you remember?" he asked and Dream froze for a moment before tapping his fingertips together nervously.

"Okay, first of all, I am really, **really** sorry about it, but in my defense, you said I'd lose my mind in a Feral state," Dream began in a stammering rush.

"Dream."

"It was your Sky Virus," the blonde blurted out and hunched his shoulders up in a cringe at the brunet's aghast stare. "I can alter the code of things, change block data and tags, stuff like that, but I had **no** idea I could modify Avatar code until I got those flashbacks!" He gestured towards Sky, who now had a hand spread over his heart and a pallid complexion. "What you have now is a copy of my Dream Virus, just modified to give your Viral Rage your old color since it was using mine. It also tried to align you to me, which is why you were blacked out for so long, but I got rid of that."

"I am gonna need so much therapy," Sky breathed out, wandering almost drunkenly over to one of the sofas and sitting heavily on it. "Gonna need to process this one.. my Sky Virus.. _gone_? _Fuuuck_..." He shuddered and shook himself off, eyes shut tight as he took in another deep breath, then let it out slowly. "Later, later, I'll freak the fuck out later. Still gotta get you an exit plan." Dream followed him to the seats, picking out a place of his own to sit and picking up another of the fruits in the basket, turning it over in his hands.

"Like I said, there isn't one, not anymore," the blonde told him firmly, "I had one in mind, but the Core File backup was stolen from Fundy after some strange Avatar snuck up on him and basically made him forget a chunk of time."

Wait.

That sounded.. familiar.

"What kind of Avatar can do that?" Sky asked with a disbelieving laugh. "That's practically FirstGen power, and Deadlox and I can't do that."

"I think.. it happened to me, too," Dream muttered. The ship, Ph1LzA looking panicked about him being unresponsive for several minutes, him knowing only that he'd been talking to someone while watching the ocean during sunset and then 'waking up' to see that night had fallen. What had he been talking about then? Lamenting over the lack of a way to recover from being taken over by Herobrine, and then a weird response to it. Maybe he had an exit strategy after all? Dream carefully kept that hope dim and hidden under his mask. "Could be nothing, just someone with a weird power pranking people."

"Well, you still can't just let Herobrine take you over! That's still going to put your Player at risk!" Sky protested as Dream hummed softly, rolling the apple he'd picked up in his hand and scanning the item data on it while he called up the Controlled Viral Wrath. The apple shimmered under his focus and modification, melting down to become a piece of string. "I tried everything I could think of when Herobrine came after me long ago, but in the end I couldn't stop Him from taking me.. from taking Adam," the brunet sighed regretfully. "And it cost my Third his life to undo that takeover. So it's vital that we have something in place to get you out of Herobrine's clutches before He can use your Player's influence to power whatever His plan is. How much strength is he currently wielding?"

Dream casually flicked his free hand to open a screen displaying a Youtube channel, string tangled around the fingers of the other. "Fifteen million, last I saw. Probably went up since then," he replied. "Is that enough for The Convergence?" He looked up at Sky's strangled whine, brows furrowed in concern. "Sky?"

"I was at eleven million when He used us to merge the worlds together.. Dream, this much power is going to destroy _everything_ ," the brunet whispered hoarsely, terror in his eyes as he looked back at the blonde. "What are we going to do?"

Dream looked at the screen -the number had jumped again another million or so-, then up at Sky as he looped the string between both hands. With a sharp motion, he jerked them apart.

The string snapped.

\---

The cells were well lit and spacious, though they were large enough that several Avatars shared one cell; George, Sapnap, and Bad were in one, Techno, Fundy, and Wilbur in another, and Setosorcerer and Deadlox shared the final cell. Instead of beds, wool blocks were laid out to resemble a bed, and there was a walled off corner for personal needs.

Dream drifted along towards the cell with his friends, escorted by the guards who made sure to remind him of the rules of visits before leaving him be. Once alone, he reached out to grip an iron bar and lean forward. "Hey, guys," he called out, flinching at the baleful glare Sapnap gave him. "Guys, please, I'm sorry for what I said and how I said it. I just.. didn't want you feeling bad when I..." He trailed off as George looked at him sadly and even Sapnap started to falter, Bad nudged George comfortingly before offering a weak smile at Dream. The blonde sighed. "I don't want my last hours with you guys being me being stupid and hurting you. Could I have one last hug at least?"

"Is there really _nothing_ we can do? Not even a Manhunt strat?" George asked, drawing close to be hugged through the bars as best he and Dream could do, with the brunet's hands still bound behind his back. Dream pressed his face into George's shoulder, tears pricking at his eyes as he let the mask slip into truth.

"I'm sorry, I'm so _sorry_ , George, I don't want to go, but I don't have anything. I gave it all up so you guys could be safe," he mumbled shakily. "I'm scared.. I don't want to die..."

A second, then a third figure joined him at the bars, pressing up to him in a group hug attempt and Dream gripped at them tightly, a sob escaping him as he tried cuddling closer through the iron bars.

"You're our best friend, Dream, I just.. I can't accept that there's nothing we can do to save you," Sapnap muttered with shaky breaths, resting his cheek on Dream's head. He nudged the goggles aside and pressed a kiss to the top of the blonde's head. "We'll be okay. Don't give up; we'll figure something out, even if it's last minute."

Dream laughed shortly, a smile on his face that was wistful and small. "Yeah, sure you will. You guys make some pretty awesome traps for me; bet you can unravel a trap, too." Eventually, hesitantly, he pulled himself free and looked over the three of them standing so close and yet so far from him. "There's a couple things I need to give you, but not just yet. It'll be right before these Cultists tell me to.. you know." He twisted his fingers together. "Anyway, I'll need you to hang on to those things. Put them on, E-chest them, whatever it takes to keep them safe and close at hand. It'll be important."

"Sure, but.. what things are you gonna give us?" Bad asked in confusion.

"You'll find out when it's time," Dream told them and took a shaky breath. "Well, bye for now. Got more messages to share."

He spent time with Techno, Wilbur, and Fundy, soaking in hugs and comfort as he gave apologies for getting them involved in the mess with the Cultists and Disillusioned and his being difficult to keep track of with all his running everywhere. From there he went to the cell with Deadlox and Seto and he took a deep breath, bringing down the goggles and tapping them to summon the mask.

"Deadlox, you're the Sysop right now, right?" he asked, pushing forward the sorrow and grief and holding it in place in his mind. The russet-haired Avatar glanced at Seto before coming closer to meet with him at the bars. He gave a nod in response. "And you're in charge of Sky Army right now? Sky mentioned it while we were talking on the caravan here."

"Yeah, the Dead Army Override," Deadlox agreed. "Normally when control of Sky Army needs to be out of Sky's hands for any reason, it falls to TrueMU, the Override Commander. But since you're the focus of everything, it went to me so the Loyalists don't end up fighting you and your friends without knowing that we actually need you to be okay."

"So if you give an order to those Loyalists, they all obey it?" Dream asked seriously. Deadlox gave a one shoulder shrug.

"Yeah, till it's carried out or I take it back cuz there's been cases when a bad order goes out and and we gotta cancel it before Sky Army makes a nasty mistake we can't undo. But, uh, that was during the single life system, so I dunno how it works now with the reincarnation penalty system," he clarified and squinted his visible eye. "Why? Did you have something in mind that I need to issue out to them? Like the coordinates of the portal that brought us here so Sky Army can mount a rescue?"

Dream gave him a wry smile. "Not quite. But, uh, I am really, _really_ sorry for what I'm about to do, please don't kick my ass too badly for this, if I make it out," he returned, the eyes of the mask gleaming magenta as he reached through the bars to grab onto Deadlox's shirt with one hand, the other spread out to press against his chest and get access to the Avatar's files. Deadlox's eyes went wide, a cry about to escape him before he fell silent at the sparks of magenta spiraling around Dream's hand.

The mask scrolled rapidly through the data, searching for the Dead Virus, and Dream glanced aside briefly at Seto hurrying over in protest, demanding to know what he was doing, before returning to his target. The section of code he was after was located and highlighted. This time, instead of replacing it like he'd inadvertently done to Sky, he inserted a function of his own with a temporary override of the Dead Virus, using a copy of the Dream Virus to bind the commands to it. Deadlox's eyes glowed, the brilliant red shifting to magenta as the coding took root and waited for the moment to act. Once installed, Dream let go and backed away, aware of the multiple eyes looking at him in shock.

Deadlox stared distantly for a moment before blinking and shaking his head, but the glowing magenta of his eyes remained. "Wha-what did you do? Why? Why you do dis?" he asked in a lost little voice, betrayed expression on his face. He blinked rapidly, shaking his head harder. "I.. I can't shut it off! My Viral Fury.. what did you **do** to it?"

"You can take control of the other Anti-Virals?" Seto whispered in horror and awe, looking from Deadlox to Dream with wide eyes. "Knew I should have sent my own agents to bring you to me.. that sort of power..."

"I am **not** your weapon," Dream groused, glaring at him before looking back at Deadlox with a regretful look. "It's a temporary thing, you'll get control of it back after you get to the Overworld, and I really am sorry I did that to you. I'll accept any punishment for it once all this is done with and I'm still myself to be punished."

"Prison's a strong possibility there, you realize?" Deadlox returned flatly, voice unsteady despite trying to pull up his apathetic expression again.

"Fine, I'll take it. As long as everyone's alive to put me there," Dream agreed, then turned abruptly and walked quickly away from the cells.

He'll deal with the consequences after everything was done, and if his suspicions were right, then there was a slim chance he might escape this trap after all. A clutch move to end all clutches.

\---

The Cultist guards gazed into the distance, unresponsive, as a short Avatar dressed in shades of black and blue and purple with a lime green sash around their waist picked up a lever from the chest at the guard post and headed for the cells. They hummed to themselves, peeking into the cells until spotting George half curled on the bed of wool blocks, sleeping. The lever was placed on a marked block, then flipped, moving iron bars aside via sticky piston. The Avatar stepped into the cell as the noise made the three on the wool blocks stir.

"Ah, there we go, you've got the thing I need," they murmured, approaching George and tapping him on the shoulder.

The brunet wrinkled his nose, blinking blearily up at the stranger. "Huh?" he asked, "Who're you?"

"Exactly," the Avatar said with a mischievous smile, deep purple eyes gleaming in the dim light. "You've got a Soul Healer artifact; I can see it around your neck." George nodded in confusion. "Okay, I've got a command to help your friend escape being stuck as Herobrine but I'm not in the mood to do a repeat performance. However, _you_ have this charm that'll do the trick perfectly."

"What?" George asked, managing to sit up as Sapnap turned over to blink at them sleepily. The stranger pointed at the charm.

"This thing releases souls to do healing. When it's time to bring your friend back to himself, get in close and use it. I'm about to put in the soul you need," they said with a smile. "You only get one shot, so make it count, no matter what." George tilted his head, still puzzled.

The Avatar swept one hand over the clasp that held their lime green sash in place at their waist, and George blinked in surprise at the familiar white circle with the smiley face, shimmering much like the one Dream wore around his neck. As the hand passed over the clasp, pixelated mist drifted out and reformed above the Avatar's palm into the form of a small white blob with a lime green hood and cloak held in place with a tiny gold circle for a clasp. It had Dream's signature smile, beaming at George with a rosy blush.

"Oh, that's really cute, looks like Dream on the merch and stuff," George remarked with a little smile back at it.

"Mhm! It should; this is a copy of his Core File. It's really dangerous to have it just transported out and about like this. Safest method of storing and moving it is within an Avatar who just so happens to have been modified to hold backup Core Files," the stranger explained and tapped themselves on the chest. "That's me. Now, I can't transfer it into another Avatar anymore, but lucky us, you've got a charm that can transfer souls." The Avatar swept their hand over George's Soul Healer and the Core File changed into mist again, soaking into the artifact and filling it up. The cool blue color swirled and became the bright green of Dream's cloak. "Keep that close. You'll know when to use it."

"Thank you," George told them gratefully. "This is exactly what we need! I don't know how you got this from Sapphira, but thank you!" The Avatar's smile immediately flipped to a frown, grim look on their face.

"There's _another_ copy? That's not good. This copy was made by that fox Avatar over there, willingly given. If this Sapphira is the one I remember, then that was stolen by force. I'll have to track it down next," they muttered and stood up, tapping one purple and gold boot against the floor. It bore a lone diamond behind the ankle, shining in the dim blue light of the soul sand lanterns. "Hm, not in the Nether, so back in the Overworld. Looks like I'll be walking back to the Grand Portal." The Avatar brought a finger up to their lips, smiling at George and Sapnap, both of whom blinked at them in confusion. "Do me a favor and not mention me to anyone? Especially to Seto, Deadlox, or Sky?"

"Uh, yeah, sure, dude.. or ma'am?" Sapnap agreed hesitantly.

"Despite how I look, yeah, I'm a guy," the other Avatar nodded. "Call me Troisième, Trois for short."

"Oh, that's.. French?" George piped up in surprise. Trois nodded again.

"Okay, gotta go now. Sadly, I have to lock you in again, but you'll be alright. Meet you in the Overworld later." With that, the strange Avatar waved and headed out of the cell, flipping the lever to close the cell and then kicking it off back into his hand. He headed back to the guard station just as the Cultists started blinking. Another wave of his hand and streams of light drifted from the guards towards him, seeping into a gold charm hanging from his choker. The Cultists stared into the distance again and Trois continued on his way, humming cheerfully.

"That guy's super weird," Sapnap muttered and yawned. "Least we got something to help Dream; we just do what Sky and his buddy did during the Viral Wars to kick out Herobrine and we win." George nodded.

"One shot, so we gotta make it count," he repeated and lay back down to rest. Hopefully he'd know when the right moment to use the charm would come.

The artifact rested against his shirt, warm and soothing with the precious soul resting within.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reason why Dream's ability to modify Avatar code is both a threat and coveted is due to how he can perform the action painlessly and with just physical contact. It can be used to heal as well as harm, and if used to harm, would in fact make Dream a very effective weapon against enemy Avatars. And as he went through the more painful version of Avatar file modifying, he's just as regretful and ashamed for doing similar to Sky and Deadlox, even if he wasn't in his right mind for Sky or if it was for a 'good reason' such as with Deadlox.
> 
> Hence, Dream's hostility towards anyone trying to weaponize him.


	31. 49. Body

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Herobrine rises once more...

49\. Body

The clock moved to the day side.

Dream stared at it from where he lay on the wool block bed, wrapped in red blankets and feeling chilled despite the cozy warmth. He could hear movement in the other rooms, then the opening of the bedroom doors. Looking over his shoulder, the blonde watched in silence as Avatars with red neckerchiefs walked in, carrying buckets of water and a tray of food. The one with the tray set it down on a table at Dream's bedside and gave him a cheerful smile.

"Good morning! The revival ceremony is in a couple of hours, so here's your breakfast. Fresh water is being brought in and stored in cauldrons for your use, the other prisoners are getting the same," he greeted and explained. "There's plenty of time for everyone to freshen up and get ready to attend."

So that was it. Two hours and then...

Dream sat up in bed and scrubbed at his face with both hands. _'Hello, sense of anxiety that's not going to leave me the whole time.'_ He pulled the tray closer and picked at the food, wondering if it even mattered to eat or clean up when in a short time his own body wouldn't be his anymore. He ignored the Cultists filing out, only looking up when Sky and Ph1LzA entered right after them, the brunet holding onto a breakfast burrito that he took regular large bites from.

"Eat up, Dream, come on. Out of bed, we've got planning to do and only two hours to do it," Ph1LzA told him, grabbing the blanket and yanking it down to the foot of the bed. The shorter blonde groaned, which was quickly silenced by Ph1LzA picking up the buttered toast and shoving it into his mouth. "Nah nah nah nah, can't be arsed to deal with the angst right now. Eat. Sky and I already got cleaned up, you're the one dragging. Come on."

"Can I just admit to being pretty jealous that you're being treated much better by these guys than I was back when it was my body Herobrine was stealing?" Sky asked in a thoughtful tone, tapping a finger against his chin as he looked around. Dream blinked at him and-

_The body of the Butter King, broken and bloody, laying at his feet with dark and empty eyes, devoid of the soul that gave him energy and life..._

-immediately coughed up the toast he'd just managed to choke down, spitting it out onto the floor as Ph1LzA hurriedly opened a bottle of water for Dream to drink and rubbed his back soothingly.

"What the **fuck** , man?! What did you **do**?!" he yelled at the brunet, who immediately held up his hands, eyes wide.

"I don't know! I barely said anything!"

"This whole shit situation's already fucking traumatizing enough, don't be adding on stupid shit like whining about not having had room service!"

"Stop _talking_!" Dream yelled, throwing the toast back onto the tray. Maybe it was the stress but he could swear the pressure building in his head was Herobrine taking pleasure in jamming that memory into his mind. He gripped his head, fingers running through his hair, and pressed back in desperate attempts to shrink the Viral presence.

"Ah no no no, don't do that," Ph1LzA urged softly, tapping Dream's wrists before carefully gripping his hands and pulling them away. "Eat your food, at least a little of it, and wash up. It'll help, alright?"

It doesn't help.

Dream manages to eat several mouthfuls of fruit crepes, but the sweetness makes him feel sickly from the dissonance. A breakfast treat for his final hours. He throws it back up in the bathroom, then sits in his bath and lets his mind grow blank and fuzzy until Ph1LzA comes in to pull him out, wrapping him in one of the fluffy towels, then sits him down and tells him stories of the loopy things Wilbur's Player did that made Wilbur act equally as loopy for the fun of it.

He pulled himself out of the haze at about the same time the story of how Wilbur's Player talking about eating sand led to Wilbur trying to stuff the top layer of the nearest desert into his inventory wrapped up. He leaned aside and sighed as a wing flared out to curl protectively around him. That helped.

"The sucky thing about trying to plan out an escape from here is this place is totally new to me so I don't have anything to work with in terms of a blueprint," Sky complained, pacing back and forth while Dream sorted through his two inventories, consolidating his resources into the backpack and throwing anything he felt he had no need for out the window. "We'd have to make it up as we go and, believe me, I'm shit at doing that. I panic and fuck things up and then we'll end up worse than we started."

"Maybe if you spent some time in Hardcore, you'd get better training on thinking on your feet," Ph1LzA returned with a grin to show the playfulness of the jab. "Mate, you don't know Dream Team and the Sleepy Boys; thinking in the moment and making shit up as we go to survive is pretty much our daily struggle when we're thrown into all kinds of shenanigans for content."

"And I'm still of the mind for you guys to **not** do anything until you get to the Overworld because my bargain is for you guys to be set free there, after.. you know," Dream griped, twirling a hand in a circular gesture rather than finish his sentence. He closed the inventory screens, then took off his backpack, tossing it towards Ph1LzA. "Keep that with you. Should have some decent supplies you can make use of once you get back to the Overworld." While the older blonde checked out the inventory himself, Dream made one final check of his clothes before glancing to the nearest clock for the time.

"Just feels wrong to roll over and let Herobrine win," Sky muttered, coming to a stop in front of the green-clad Avatar and tapping his foot with nervous energy. "Feels like..."

"Like your friend's death turned out to be a meaningless waste," Dream finished for him quietly. He rubbed the back of his neck with equal nervousness. "Sorry. But if it's any consolation, I think.. things will turn out okay for everyone.. as long as you don't fight here. Just, for now.. just give up."

Sky and Ph1LzA looked at one another and the brunet fidgeted a bit more before sighing harshly, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I really, _really_ want to trust in you about this, Dream," he said slowly, "so okay. Okay, I'm putting it in your hands. Whatever you have going on," Sky held out a hand to Dream, a crooked grin on his face, "I'll follow it to the end. We win this, I'll be content. We lose, we won't be alive long enough for me to be upset anyway so fuck it!"

Dream let out a surprised laugh, clapping his hand to Sky's in a firm shake. "Here's hoping things work out, then!" he agreed.

\---

The location where the ceremony would take place was a large courtyard behind the castle, with a sizable staging area of Crimson wood, gilded blackstone and chiseled quartz. Dream swallowed nervously as he, Sky, and Ph1LzA were led into the courtyard, flanked on both sides by Cultist guards who kept shooting the Butter King suspicious looks since he was calmly going along with the revival of the being that he waged war against for years. The procession led onto the staging area, where the rest of Dream and Sky's friends already stood waiting inside another constructed cage.

They looked unharmed, which gave Dream some relief to see. Kothra stood nearby the cage, talking at Sapnap and riling up the ravenet. What **was** his deal with Sapnap?

"Ugh, great, just like Savoy," Sky muttered in irritation, taking in the same scene. "He was a Squidling who was always on my ass about being a distraction and unworthy of being around Deadlox and was always trying to turn him into a high rank officer in the Squid Army. Looks like your friend there attracted the attention of a Squidling."

"You can tell?" Dream asked and the brunet tapped at his ear.

"I can hear squid voices; they're annoying as fuck to listen to and Squidlings have this effect to their speech that I can detect, makes 'em sound like they're talking through water," he explained as the Avatar in question approached them with a smile.

"Everything is ready and the castle residents are in position," Kothra told Dream, gesturing with one hand at the stands full of Avatars cheering ecstatically around them. "Do you have any last preparations to make before we awaken Lord Herobrine?"

Dream hesitated and Sky pat his shoulder comfortingly as Ph1LzA stretched a wing to press against his back encouragingly. He looked at the two older Avatars, gave them a weak smile, then faced the spymaster. "I'd like to give my friends some mementos of me, to remember me by for as long as they live," he told him. Kothra raised an eyebrow at him, then nodded and gestured towards the cage, letting Dream cross the stage to it while the guards continued escorting the other two Avatars to a pair of seats set up near the cage.

"George, Sapnap!" Dream greeted breathlessly, gripping the iron bars as his two friends drew close to him with tearful smiles. The Cultists must have felt confident and had untied their hands, but kept the others bound still. At least this way, George and Sapnap were able to reach back and hug him tight.

"You're really still going through with this?" Sapnap murmured, eyes searching Dream's face for any hint of a clue to otherwise, but the mask shielded him as always.

"Yeah, but you're gonna be okay," Dream told them warmly. "I might not be around, but my name still brings in hits. You can still use me as much as you need to for your Players to thrive. Just look after Clay for me; have Nick and other George tell him to switch to DreamXD from now on, okay?"

"Dream, we're going to have to work on you objectifying yourself like that when all this is done," George told him firmly, giving his shoulder a comforting squeeze. "That's not a healthy way to think of yourself and us and our Players; you're not a _thing_ to be used, you're someone we care a lot about." The blonde gave him a wry grin.

"And yet you still won't tell me you love me~!" he replied teasingly and laughed. He looked back over his shoulder at Kothra, then squared his shoulders. "Okay, I gotta go. Hang on to these for me, okay?"

Carefully, Dream tapped the mask to collapse it back into the goggles, then slipped them off his head and fitted them to Sapnap's head. The ravenet bent his head down to better help with it, then reached up to touch the goggles in confusion. George swallowed, face flushing red as Dream recalled the cloak to the smiley-face clasp and took it off, slipping it over George's head in the same motion. The medallion came to a rest near the green Soul Healer that Dream blinked curiously at when it gleamed brighter in his presence and the Totem of Undying that had yet to be used.

"Dream, once you let go of this..." the brunet whispered, frightened eyes looking through the lenses of his glasses at him.

"You're gonna be okay," Dream repeated and smiled tearfully. "I love you guys, you're my best friends." He looked up at Bad, Techno, Fundy, and Wilbur to include them. "It's been so much fun playing with you guys. Take care of yourself, do what you gotta do to survive, and thrive."

Dream let go of the medallion.

Diamond blue energy crackled around him in arcs of lightning, a haze of bluish light radiating around his figure as Dream walked away from the cage to the open stage, the courtyard falling into a hush of tense anticipation.

_[/Entity.Viral.Herobrine overwrite operation Dream files: 10% complete.]_

_[/Entity.Viral.Herobrine overwrite operation Dream files: 23% complete.]_

_[/Entity.Viral.Herobrine overwrite operation Dream files: 37% complete.]_

_"And now we fulfill what I told you so very long ago,"_ Herobrine's voice crooned over him, chuckling triumphantly. _"All your speedrunning couldn't help you escape my grasp in the end."_

_[/Entity.Viral.Herobrine overwrite operation Dream files: 49% complete.]_

"Yeah?" Dream murmured, closing his eyes and smiling wider. "You remember that."

_[/Entity.Viral.Herobrine overwrite operation Dream files: 65% complete.]_

_"How does it **feel** , knowing your last moments are to be spent in absolute **failure**?"_

_[/Entity.Viral.Herobrine overwrite operation Dream files: 80% complete.]_

Dream raised his arms to the audience that oohed at the sight before them, the diamond blue lightning swirling longer and faster around his body, obscuring the green as the aura burned brighter.

"Like victory," he quipped, then snapped the fingers of both hands, the sound echoing like a thundercrack in the courtyard.

_[/Entity.Viral.Herobrine overwrite operation Dream files: 100% complete.]_

_[/Initializing Herobrine Viral Avatar...]_

_[ **Herobrine** has joined the game.]_

The light engulfing Dream exploded outward, then faded slowly, revealing the dirty blonde Avatar standing on stage, dressed in a dusty blue shirt with dark vest, deep brown pants and black dress shoes. A diamond pickaxe coded into his right hand, data and pixels merging together to form the shining tool. He twirled it once, then flicked his hand to dismiss it to his hotbar. His mouth twitched up into a small smile, and he opened his eyes to the audience waiting with bated breath, looking up at the multitude of Avatars with their luminous white color.

"How long since I felt the hellish heat of the Nether?" Herobrine purred, raising one arm to run fingers through the air, twirling loose embers around His fingers. "Since I last saw cinders of destruction dance to my song? How sweet it will be to pursue my unfinished symphony to its intended _finale_."

The Avatars in the audience rose and cheered wildly, calling out His name in fervent joy, as Herobrine turned to walk towards Kothra, the spymaster standing at attention and saluting sharply. "Lord Herobrine, Kothra of the intelligence division; it is an honor to see you revived in your chosen body," he greeted formally as Sky stood abruptly from his seat.

"Good to be back, Kothra, at ease," Herobrine returned and turned His smile to Sky. "Ah, my old foe, the Butter King himself. Why so upset? I'm not after **your** body anymore. This one has far greater pull than you had at your peak."

"He was my **friend** ," Sky growled, Ph1LzA rising up to grip his shoulder to ground him and pull him away. Herobrine shrugged nonchalantly, smiling wider, mischief in His expression.

"So was the Mimic Mage. He died for nothing back then, and now Dream is dead, too. Are there any other companions you wish to lay at my feet for my amusement?" He asked and laughed, waving His hand over Himself. "Don't answer; like I said, I've got the perfect body now." He turned away to walk along the cage, looking into it with His head tilted in interest, eerie eyes taking in the glowering expressions of the Avatars within. "So all of you are who I have to thank for a smooth transition from dormant Virus to newly reborn God," He murmured and gestured to one of the guards. "You have my eternal gratitude for your obedience to the inevitable. So, I'm going to keep to my end of the bargain and honor your friend's final wish."

George, Sapnap, and Bad huddled together, fighting back tears and glaring with frustration and fury as Herobrine smiled at them with Dream's face, an unholy glee that was more malevolent than anything the speedrunner had ever managed on his own. "You'll be the last to witness me display proof of my ultimate superiority to all other lifeforms. Kothra, guards, please escort all of our guests here to the Grand Portal and toss them back to the Overworld. None of them are allowed to return and try to 'rescue' their friend's body," He ordered while the guards hurriedly tore down the cage. "If they try and break away while here, or if they try and come back through the portal after being sent through, _kill them_."

He turned His back on the grieving group and walked to the mass of red-cloaked Avatars chanting His name, laughing victoriously as He gestured towards them to increase the hype of His return.

"Did we lose?" Bad whispered sorrowfully as the guards pressed in to herd them back to the stables. Sapnap shook his head.

"No. Dream did his part; now it's up to us to finish the job," he said firmly.

"You have **any** idea what Dream was planning that had 'let Herobrine have access to the power of seventeen million subscribers' as a major step in it?" Technoblade asked in stressed disbelief, staring blankly at the caravan being assembled for their return trip, "Cuz I'd **really** like to know what comes after that! I'd feel **so** much better about this plan if I knew what step comes **after** that! _Dream!_ Why didn't you leave us a playbook for this?!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Single Life System - If an Avatar is killed by any cause when their Player is not logged into them (In Solo), the Core File is destroyed and all memories they've made are wiped out. The next time they're logged into and re-Awakened, a new Core File is created and the Avatar starts from square one in developing themselves as an individual. This can be avoided by creating a Core File Backup and reinstalling it after the Avatar is logged in and sent to Minecraftia but not Awakened. This wasn't regularly done as there wasn't a safe long term storage method for backup Core Files aside from having another Avatar modified to hold the backup within themselves in stasis.
> 
> Reincarnation Penalty System - Post Exile, Minecraftia allows for the preservation of Avatar Core Files as long as the Avatar has enough saved experience levels and points to cover the cost of revival with 10 levels being the minimum to preserve the Core File in the event of an In Solo death. (An Avatar 'In Solo' is one who is not logged into and thus tethered to their Player to allow for consequence free deaths. An Avatar 'In Sync' is one that is logged into; they move stiffly, their eyes darken, and their account name appears over their heads as floating words.)


	32. 21. Turning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> George and Sapnap start trying to piece together Dream's potential plan to defeat Herobrine, while the Cultists annoy their Lord with their behavior.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cw: loss of limb, vague implied past sexual assault

21\. Turning

The Grand Portal hummed a low, ominous tone as the light rippled, a caravan passing through to enter the Overworld. Within the locked room of the largest wagon, Deadlox lifted his head, magenta eyes gleaming as he looked out the small window at the crater walls and jungle trees of the giant lagoon.

_[Requirement: Overworld presence.]_

_[Checking Dimensional data...]_

_[Set Overworld.var = true;]_

_[If Overworld.var = true;]_

_[Run: Rally Sky Army to terminate target;]_

_[Set target = Herobrine!Dream;]_

_[Awaiting confirmation...]_

"Geh!" Deadlox grunted, grimacing as sweat broke over his face, alerting the other Avatars to his condition and startling SkythekidRS. "N-no, don't do dis. D-Don't.. don't do dis. Don't d-do d-dis!" Seto sat up, eyes wide and bright as he stared at the Anti-Viral.

"Did it activate? What did he do? What is he running? Can you tell what code he implanted?" he asked rapidly before catching himself and shaking his head. "I mean, are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"Seto, what the hell?! Of course, he's not okay!" Sky told him in disbelief, "When Deadlox starts repeating himself, that's his indicator that shit's gone wrong! You know that!" He hurried to his friend's side, cupping Deadlox's face in his hands and inhaling sharply at the magenta glow in his eyes. "What the-? That's Dream's Viral Wrath color! Don't tell me he overwrote your Dead Virus, too!" the brunet exclaimed, dismay making his voice pitch higher.

"It's running, can't stop it.. it's waiting, it's waiting!"

George and Sapnap watched the scene before them worriedly. Had Dream installed something else when he altered code inside the russet-haired Avatar? They looked at each other, then back at the artifacts in their hands that Dream had passed on to them. The mask remained in goggle form, dangling around Sapnap's neck as he had pulled it down to keep it from catching on the ribbon tied around his head. The gold band that was the strap's clasp gleamed with the shine of enchantment, radiating a soft light from the immunization aura. Around George's neck was the white smiley-face medallion that usually acted as a clasp for Dream's cloak. It radiated the same soft light, and George's hand rarely left it, fingers constantly rubbing against the edge of the circular shape.

"So what's the game plan?" Technoblade muttered, shifting in his seat to get closer to Sapnap. "Like, I really hope there's one, because thinking about Herobrine having all of Dream's knowledge and skills is making me consider self-exile as a markedly intelligent career move."

"I'm trying to figure out what Dream's plan is, but we've got our pieces of it from him and Trois," Sapnap whispered to him, glancing over at the trio of Sky Army Avatars. "We've got the Anti-Viral Artifacts to help reseal Herobrine that Dream gave us since apparently none of those Cultists had a clue what these were. And we were visited the other night by an Avatar named Trois..."

"It's French, Sapnap's saying it wrong cuz he's uncultured," George cut in with a teasing grin, leaning around the ravenet. Sapnap rolled his eyes, not looking away as he struck out quickly with a fist to the brunet's shoulder. "Ow! Dream, Sapnap's killing me again!"

They both froze at that, then looked at each other as Techno, Ph1LzA, Bad, Wilbur, and Fundy gave them equally saddened expressions. They moved closer together for comfort while Sapnap gathered George in his arms and hugged him tightly, closing his eyes and listening to the other Avatar whimper into his shoulder. It was just a slip, a routine they always took part in as easily as breathing, and yet the loss of their team leader didn't sink in until there was no one to laugh at their antics. No breathless wheeze that stretched for eternity while they roughhoused playfully.

The silent passage in the soundtrack of their lives hurt.

\---

The caravan was unloaded at the dock in the fishing village, the Cultists escorting the group of Avatars now herding them up the ramp to the ship again. This time, however, instead of being taken down below decks to the prison cells, they were shoved into several rooms, the doors locked to keep them in. Sapnap kicked at the door, tempted to flick to the Highland Axe and break it down. Being back on the ship meant they'd be taken back to the mainland, or they could be dumped on some remote island in the middle of nowhere.

At some point, he couldn't even remember when, Sapnap had changed from kicking the door to banging fists against it, yelling furiously. Arms were thrown around him from the side and he jerked one arm back, his elbow hitting something hard and sparking a pins and needles feeling through it that snapped him back to his senses. He breathed hard, wetness on his cheeks and on his knuckles and sides of his hands that he didn't realize he had. Splotches of red and rust stained the oak door, drying streaks trailing down from them.

"You were hurting yourself, Sapnap, please," George murmured, trembling as he hugged the ravenet a little tighter. "We lost Dream.. I don't want to lose you next." Sapnap stood still, waiting for his breathing to even out as he gazed at the floor.

"I promised to protect him, and I couldn't do it," the ravenet said softly. "What good is being a Power Class when I can't use that strength to protect my best friend, my brother?"

They stood together, listening to the waves of the ocean and waiting for calm to come over them. Eventually, George pulled away and tugged on Sapnap's sleeve. "C'mon. Let's get you a potion to drink to heal up," he said, moving a hand in front of himself to open his inventory screen and pull out a pair of potion bottles. He handed one to Sapnap and opened the other for himself, which had the taller Avatar take notice of the bleeding cut over George's left eye that cut into the tail end of his eyebrow. Briefly he wondered with alarm as to what had caused the injury, then remembered the numb pain of his arm when his elbow impacted something behind himself. He winced guiltily as he drank the potion in small sips, watching George do the same. "Sorry.. 'bout your eye," he apologized, giving a small smile when George patted his arm in acceptance.

"Huh, we never finished telling Techno about what Trois gave us," the brunet remarked suddenly, putting the empty bottle away. "Break down the door and we'll go look for him. Not like the Cultists have any reason to keep us locked in; they already **got** what they wanted, the muffinheads..."

"Don't gotta ask me twice," Sapnap agreed, flicking his hand to the Highland Axe and slamming the door with it. He expected it to break and pop off into item form; the door breaking apart into wooden shards that scattered over the floor was **not** expected. George gawked at the pieces of wood, pushing his glasses up to the top of his head. "Huh, that's.. new," the ravenet muttered warily, "Is this a Dungeons thing?" He kicked out his foot, nudging the fragments around experimentally. "I guess they'll time out eventually."

"Hey, Sapnap, if we're free to go after we're in the Overworld, like Herobrine said, why'd the Cultists keep everyone else tied up, and then separate us, Sky, and Philza from them in these rooms?" George asked carefully, following Sapnap out of the room and poking at the wood shards with his shoe as he passed. Sapnap glanced back at him, then faced forward, new determination set in his expression.

"Dunno, but I don't like it. Screw it, let's bust down these other doors and untie everyone," he decided and headed for the next door he saw. "George, you've got an axe, right? Dream didn't turn it into a stick or an apple or anything? Break down these doors!"

Doors popped off into items or shattered into fragments as George and Sapnap opened up the various rooms and went in to untie the other Avatars. Technoblade rubbed at his wrists, sniffing indignantly. "Took you long enough. That Kothra guy was lucky I stayed tied up; I can't handle poor people flirting with me. Makes me want to let them down gently using the universal language of graphic violence," he said flatly, flicking his hand to his rapier to keep it on hand.

"Where's everyone else?" Fundy asked, rubbing his own wrists as he headed for the open door, ears pulled back worriedly. They perked up, his tail twitching happily, as Ph1LzA and Sky emerged into the hall from another room. The Butter King held an all gold sword in one hand, looking around with concern.

"Ah! No no no! Don't untie me! Don't don't **don't** untie me!" Deadlox yelled in a panic and Sky bolted for the room where his friend was held. Ph1LzA just watched him run off as Sapnap entered another room to free Wilbur and BadBoyHalo.

"What do you suppose he's on about?" he asked as everyone gathered in the hallway. "Bit busted for an escape, too. Nobody's come to see what's making so much noise." He looked at the other end of the hall, towards the door that led to the deck. "Techno, feel like stretching out your sword arm? Go see what's taking those Cultists so long." The kingly Avatar nodded and ran for the exit, Wilbur following after him with a bow in hand.

The Sky Army Avatars finally joined them, led by George as Sapnap checked one last time for any loose supplies in the rooms. Deadlox's magenta eyes glowed brightly while his expression remained in a grimace, hands still bound behind his back despite Sky wanting to remove the leads. "Why's he still tied up?" Sapnap asked, walking up to the group with his axe over one shoulder.

"I tried to untie him but he started screaming about it, didn't you hear?" George returned with a half shrug.

"Don't untie me. Don't don't untie me," the russet-haired Avatar repeated, nodding emphatically at the group. "The code's running, it's waiting, I don't want to issue the command." Setosorcerer folded his arms over his chest.

"Dream modified his files while we were in those cells back at the Nether Castle, implanting some sort of conditional command to run once we got back here in the Overworld," he explained. George and Sapnap glanced at each other with subtle nods. That explained some things for them. Seto's eyes lit up at the memory of what he'd witnessed. "It was both frightening and fascinating! An Avatar with the power to directly manipulate and add code to other Anti-Viral Avatars! Maybe to all Avatars in general! Could you imagine what we could be capable of doing to increase our power if we had **that** under our control-?" he exclaimed eagerly.

"Seto! _Seriously?!_ " Sky interrupted in disbelief, "Didn't we **just** get through an experience that taught us that fucking with Dream is bad for _everybody_?!" He pinched the bridge of his nose and growled softly. "We are _so_ going to have to have that talk as soon as we get back to Sky Capital, or what's **left** of it. You know? Because your stupid attempt to have him tortured into obedience to Sky Army pissed him off enough to fucking _raze it to the ground_?!"

"Language," Bad sighed as the door to the hall was kicked open by Wilbur, the wavy-haired Avatar looking at them in a panic.

"The Cultists are all gone! They teleported off the ship!" he cried out as the Avatars blinked in surprise.

"Oh, that's good!" Fundy said brightly, clapping his hands together once. "We can take over the ship and head for the mainland."

"They also filled the cargo hold with TNT! It's about to detonate!" Wilbur added, waving his arms wildly, "Techno's trying to find the redstone wiring!"

"Next time, lead with that!" Ph1LzA yelled as the group ran for the exit, rushing to get to open air and find the Piglin hybrid.

They didn't need to search; Techno ran up the steps from the entrance to the lower decks to join them, eyes wide and face pale as a splash sounded nearby. He leaped at Ph1LzA with open arms, alarming the older Avatar in the split second of time they had before the ship exploded. Avatars and debris were thrown into the air, scattered by the blast as the vessel broke apart and sank, TNT still detonating under the water uselessly, shockwaves slamming into fish and killing them.

Bodies hit the surface of the deep ocean and sank below the waves in varying states of injury, still struggling to swim or hold on to their breaths, bubble meters appearing in their unfocused visions. Further into the black they drifted, hands clutching at friends nearby, reaching for a light that seemed so far above. Pieces of the ship swirled around them, floating up to the surface, riding on the bubbles of air escaping open mouths.

A burst of golden light sparked in the deep black ocean.

Dozens of tentacles stretched up from below, wrapping around each of the scattered, drowning Avatars. Code nudged at code, requesting access where it could, injecting itself where it couldn't, until everyone in the tentacles' grasp had a line of foreign code running in their bodies, restoring the bubble meters and looping it for infinite water breathing.

Rising up to the Avatars now held in stable position under the ocean, the figure of SkythekidRS radiated a large golden aura from which the tentacles originated. Battered from the blast, he held his right arm close to his body, solid gold eyes squinting from pain. Of the dozens of tentacles he had spawned, a few were used to hold onto the other Avatars and keep them alive, the rest drifted below him, moving to keep him suspended. They opened, then closed together, propelling Sky upward.

Weakly, Sapnap lifted a hand to get his attention, pointing to an island in the distance when Sky looked at him. The brunet nodded and oriented himself to face the nearby landmass, the tentacles resuming their pattern to allow him to swim swiftly along, pulling the other Avatars closer to himself for safety and streamlined travel.

\---

The island beach was strewn with a few bits of ship debris along with the group of Avatars who had been abandoned on said ship. Sapnap coughed a few times as he sat on the sand, cradling George close to keep him upright while the brunet spat up ocean water and shivered from cold. Nearby was Sky, slumped on the ground where he'd collapsed after gently depositing everyone on the soft sand and retracting the foreign code, the golden tentacles flickering then blinking out of existence as their owner passed out. Deadlox curled against his side, face hidden by his hair and hands freed when the bindings on them snapped at some point between the explosion and ending up on the island.

BadBoyHalo lay on his back next to Sapnap, head turned to one side in case he spat up anything more after falling unconscious. The ravenet had checked him over carefully, finding a few broken ribs that his regen was already working on repairing and a broken ankle that was bumped down in priority by the healing. His breathing was shaky and sometimes resulted in a gargle that meant water was being rejected, but otherwise it was regular.

Fundy managed to move around, limping on a broken leg, and gathered up enough ship debris and blocks to craft a campfire and set it up. He now sat near it, having dragged an unconscious Wilbur and Setosorcerer to it to dry and warm up. A bottle of potion was in his hands, half drunk as he tried to keep awake despite his exhaustion to finish it and gain health and repair his leg.

The other concerning situation was Ph1LzA and Technoblade. The kingly Avatar had thrown himself at Ph1LzA as a shield against the explosion that ripped through the ship behind him, taking the brunt of the damage, and so was already in poor shape when he hit the water. The previously broken arm had shattered, floating pixels and data swirling around the base of his left shoulder and nothing more beyond that. A large chunk of hair had been burnt or slashed away, long tresses now shortened to shoulder length. Ph1LzA was breathing for him, holding Techno's head on a tilt to keep his airway clear and pinching his nose closed, regularly taking deep breaths of air, then transferring it mouth to mouth.

Sapnap watched worriedly and breathed a sigh of relief when Techno finally responded, coughing up water and gasping, eyes fluttering open and looking dazed, unfocused. Tension drained from Ph1LzA, the older Avatar gathering him up in a hug as his wings spread and wrapped around them both, shielding them from view.

"Ugh.. wh.. what happened?" Bad's voice rasped and the ravenet looked aside in surprise as the demonic Avatar stirred and slowly sat up. One hand lifted to his head and Bad grimaced a bit before coughing. "Feel like I got muffined really bad, like a bunch of Ravagers ran me over then kicked me into a Pillager outpost." He moved his hand down to gingerly rub at his ribs, "I think these are mostly healed, but I'm still short a few hearts. Anyone got any food?"

"The ship exploded. TNT trap. Think those Cultists set us up since Herobrine wanted us alive to watch Him wreck everything with Dream's body," Sapnap muttered, swiping before himself to open his inventory and pull a few steaks to hand over to Bad. "Half hope He kicks their asses for that; was absolute dog water." He pulled a few more to give to George once the brunet had his coughing under control. The three of them ate slowly, watching the sun sink lower in the sky, an orange glow overtaking the blue of the ocean and stark against the fading smoke from the now sunken ship.

There was the sound of motion as Deadlox stirred and sat up, rubbing his head. He froze, then swiped open a command screen, hands typing rapidly as he muttered over and over in a panic. "No, no, no, someone stop me, please, pls, plox, stop me, _stop me_!" he babbled, eyes wide. But no one was in good enough condition to move towards him, and his shoulders slumped as he finished entering the command, magenta glow finally fading from his eyes.

_[Sky Army war declaration targeting Herobrine.]_

_[Herobrine spawned as NewGen Avatar: Dream.]_

_[Non-cancellation order accepted.]_

_[Dream Virus temporary overwrite uninstalled.]_

"What did you do?" Fundy asked in confusion as Deadlox looked at his own hands sadly.

"Turned the Sky Army Loyalists under my command against Herobrine directly," he sighed. "I tried to fight against it, but Dream's command had control over my hands. Why do you think I didn't want to be untied?" He ran both hands through his hair, gripping it for a second before dropping them to his sides. "It's a non-cancellation order; I can't recall the Recruits once they have the mission of waging war against Herobrine. It's what Sky Army was built up to do, we're not gonna let Herobrine survive if we can help it."

Sapnap and George frowned thoughtfully as they looked at each other. Dream had done that purposely, so it had to play a role in whatever plan he had. What could he have been planning, to need almost every faction in Minecraftia focused on targeting him? And at the same time have the two of them hold onto the Artifacts and George getting the backup of Dream's Core File from Trois? Was Dream trying to recreate how Herobrine was defeated in the Viral War?

The sun sank lower as the rest of the group woke up and assessed their injuries, with George and Fundy passing around potions to help with healing. Seto and Sky poured over their screens, trying to undo the targeting command Deadlox sent out to no avail. Bad sent out messages to Skeppy, wavering over whether or not to accept teleport requests until they timed out and auto-denied. Techno was in a state of shock, eyes constantly drawn to the pixelated stump where his left arm used to be, face pale as he gripped his shoulder. Ph1LzA kept encouraging him to drink and eat, wing wrapping around him in attempts to hide the missing arm and distract the pink-haired Avatar.

"Uuuugh, _whyyy_ did Dream want all of Sky Army targeting him?!" Sky groaned, "We barely managed to beat Herobrine's forces at our full military strength! Now He's got a body with a higher pool of energy than me, Sky Army is splintered and corrupted with Disillusioned and Cultist spies, and my Sky Virus got replaced by this customized Dream Virus!" He threw his arms up into the air as Seto looked his way in interest. "I don't know what this thing does inside me! That giant squid form thing I did and the infinite bubble meter code I can share is new, that's cool. Actually keeping my sanity in Feral state? POG! _Thank you, Dream!_ But what the **fuck** else does this do to me?!" He snapped one hand down without looking, finger up to shush Seto. "Seto, I swear to god, if you say anything that sounds anything like you wanting to fiddle with my files to check, first of all, not without buying me dinner first, second, I have PTSD! Stop nearly triggering it!" Sky declared. The sorcerer shut his mouth with an audible click of his teeth, blinking rapidly.

"What do we do now?" George asked glumly. "The ship sank, we're in the middle of nowhere, we're injured or code-damaged, Sky Army's gonna go after Dream again cuz Herobrine took him over.. we need a plan of our own and a way to get back to the mainland."

"Command block," Deadlox muttered, raising a hand to open his command screen and type into it, "Switching to Creative Mode." The group watched him keep typing, holding out a hand as the block appeared in it, the familiar peach color and patterned faces making George sit up in surprise.

"You have to be in Creative to get one of those, that's right," he murmured and looked at Sapnap curiously. "How did Dream get one for me? We don't have the permissions to switch to Creative Mode, other than with that one book he got me with the command block. I never asked him." Sapnap shrugged evasively, expression darkening.

"He said to never ask how he got it, so probably something illegal," he muttered back, tone purposely light.

"Set the coords to SkyHub. We need to get medical attention for a lot of Avatars," Sky told his friend and Sapnap raised his voice.

"Ah, that might not be a good idea, if the rest of your army pals are there!" he called out, "We're still technically wanted by Sky Army for running off with Dream and evading the law!"

"What? That's stupid. _Uuugh_ , I need to fix everything with Sky Army, don't I?" the Butter King complained, one hand running fingers through his hair. "Okay, then where can we go to regroup and plan? Sky Tower Alpha?"

"It was badly damaged in the Battle of Sky Capital and it's still too close to SkyHub, plus no medical supplies," BadBoyHalo pointed out with a worried expression. "Don't you have some neutral ground? Or maybe send a message out to not try and arrest us?"

"Set the coords to our house," George said suddenly, standing up on shaky legs, swiping open the chat window to type them to Deadlox. "We've got a little workshop where we make our supplies for going to new Manhunt training locations. Should have stuff we can use and a better place for Techno to rest." He sent off the numbers then flicked his hand to the Manhunt Compass, watching the needle on it spin wildly.

_[Dream not found.]_

_[Dream not found.]_

_[Dream not found.]_

\---

_[Listening for key words......]_

Hundreds of diamond pickaxes lined the walls of the storage room as Herobrine walked alongside them, running His hands over the gemstone heads and infusing them with viral coding. These would be taken into the Overworld and planted into random chunks of Minecraftia, to spread His viral code and anchor it in place, claiming more land and fencing in Sky Territories. Kothra stood at the door to the room, book and quill in hands as he jotted down the number of prepared picks. A chat screen floated near him, which he used to send out messages to the network ready to receive the picks and scatter them.

"The Brinelands have lost ground since I've been gone," Herobrine murmured, bringing fingers up to His chin thoughtfully and frowning a bit. "Despite Sky being gone for the same amount of time as myself, my influence was whittled away somehow. Explain." He turned to look at Kothra for answers.

"Sky and Deadlox left behind their key items that were enchanted with the code to create immunity against you and the Squid Virus, the Anti-Viral Artifacts," Kothra reported, turning a page in his book to scribble down more notes. "Those were placed in Sky Tower Alpha, according to my spies, and dripped their immunization code into the Overworld through the network of gold and jukeboxes spread throughout Minecraftia. At some point, the Artifacts were removed from Sky Tower Alpha and we have not been able to locate them since."

Herobrine paused in His ministrations of the pickaxes and scowled, turning His head to Kothra again. "You could not _locate_ them? And yet you never wondered why I was unable to immediately revive myself in Dream's body?" He asked coldly. The spymaster lifted his head from his note-taking, eyes widening in realization. Herobrine tilted His head slowly, one hand rising over His heart. "..Wait.. the Artifacts were removed to allow my revival. Where are they now?" He asked carefully.

"Dream's last request.. he wanted to give his friends mementos of himself…" Kothra trailed off, then carefully placed a palm over his face. "I'll alert the Cultists on the ship to confiscate Dream's mask and cloak; we can't have those items returned to Sky Army." He typed into the screen and blinked. "The one in charge of the squad escorting them is requesting a teleport?" He accepted it and cartoon character-themed Avatar appeared before him. They saluted, smiling widely.

"The rest of the squad is teleporting to other agents in the castle, but I wanted to give you and Lord Herobrine the news personally!" they declared, "We've set a trap on the ship and sank it with all prisoners still on board! And since they only had beds in there to sit on, they'll respawn in the sunken ship, drown, and we'll be rid of Sky Army's leaders forever!"

Herobrine stalked forward, teeth bared furiously as He grabbed the Avatar by the throat and dragged the choking Cultist out with Him to the main foyer of the Nether Castle, where dozens of Cultists were already gathered, preparing to head out to the various Nether Portals that were abandoned by the Recruits suddenly. " **This** useless pile of code decided that they could _think_ and _plan_ for themselves what to do with **my** enemies! As if they knew **my** plan in **my** place!" He yelled, gaining the attention of the Cultists. He then dangled the Avatar in His grasp over the banister of the upper floor He stood on. "See what happens to those who step outside the parameters **I** set for you!" Herobrine went on, diamond blue light dancing over the cartoony Avatar before sinking into their eyes, the Avatar flailing helplessly with a horrified expression.

In moments, the color was drained out and they went still, eyes glowing pure white and expression frozen. Herobrine opened His hand, letting them drop to the lower level. They crashed to the floor, lay there twitching, then lifted themselves to their feet in unnaturally jerky movements. They shuffled around, silent, a terrifyingly empty shell of who they once were. The other Cultists drew back from them in fear, looking up at Herobrine apprehensively.

"Remember your place! I am your _God_ ; you live at **my** whim and die on **my** command," Herobrine announced coldly. "You do not think for yourselves, you are to move where I tell you to move, do as I tell you to do. You exist only to act as extensions of **my** will until I am _done_ with you." He flicked a hand to grip a diamond pickaxe. "You will each take one of my treated pickaxes and take to the Overworld! Plant them in lands where Sky Army's presence can be found. They will be my network to travel and spread my power." He gestured with the pickaxe, then turned on His heel and stalked away, slamming the doors of the upper level shut behind him.

Down below, a pair of Cultists glanced askance at each other in doubt and concern, their hands reaching up to touch fingers to their red neckerchiefs, bits of lime green still woven in from the effects of the Sky Song several days earlier.

_[Listening for key words......]_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The tag that warns of implied non-con/assault in the past is meant for this chapter, as it was how Dream was able to 'buy' the Command Block and Creative Mode book for George. The story behind it may come up in another collection of fill fics, like previously mentioned, with more proper tagging and warnings.


	33. 26. Fever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> George and Sapnap bring the other Avatars home to recover, heal, and reassess their situation. A plan needs to be made to stop Herobrine, but a fever seems to be affecting certain members of the group, revealing a more subtle and insidious threat to Minecraftia.

26\. Fever

The house in the birch forest looked exactly the way it did the day the Dream Team left it to wish Dream luck on his mission in the Nether, that same fateful day things went so horribly awry thanks to a Cultist fan with a viral arrow in a crossbow. Far beyond the forest, visible in the distant skyline, a series of black structures pointing to the heavens marked the ruins of Sky Capital. SkyHub was already moving away from the crumbling city, a mass of gold, quartz, glass, and obsidian in the sky just sliding away from its failure to manage the disaster that was Feral Viral Wrath Dream. The birch forest, by comparison, looked and felt idyllic, pens of animals making soft noises in greeting to the large group of Avatars that had teleported en masse to the clearing.

Exhausted and beaten down, spirits low, they carefully made their way up the path to the house proper, waiting as Sapnap opened the door, axe in hand as he glanced inside quickly to scope the interior. When he deemed the building safe, he pushed the door open fully and let the others in. Avatars piled in and started seeking out places to sit and rest, the more injured taking up places on the makeshift couches.

"Techno's not doing too well. You have a spare bedroom he can have a lie down in?" Ph1LzA asked George quietly, approaching him while helping the kingly Avatar stay standing. George glanced over him quickly, brows furrowed together in worry. Techno listed to one side, leaning against Ph1LzA's arm for support, grimacing in pain. Was his shoulder giving him trouble?

"Yeah, sure, follow me," the brunet murmured and led the two Avatars upstairs to the bedrooms. A guest house had been on the to-do list for ages, but they never got around to building it. It wasn't a priority when the trio of friends had multiple homes around the Overworld for any location they did Manhunt training. George winced a little, thinking of the apartment Dream had bought in Sky Capital for use as a Recruit, unwilling to share the coordinates of any of the Dream Team homes. It was a sure bet that it was gone now, blown apart or torn down by the blonde in his retaliation for being tortured.

He pushed open the door to Dream's room, allowing Ph1LzA and Techno inside. "He probably wouldn't mind letting a friend use it," George remarked with a wistful smile as the older Avatar helped Techno lay down and placed a hand against his forehead. "Any idea what's wrong? Besides the obvious, y'know..." he asked.

"I've got a suspicion," Ph1LzA muttered, brushing back Techno's hair and flicking sweat from his fingers, "Come over here, George." The brunet approached as the older man settled himself onto a chair at the bedside. Once he was standing in front of him, Ph1LzA pointed at the medallion. "Hold that over Techno, right here," he told George and demonstrated by pressing his fingers lightly over Techno's heart.

Warily, George lifted the cord over his head and gripped the medallion in his hand. He looked down at the smiling face, then reached out with it, placing it where Ph1LzA showed him.

Immediately, Techno reacted to the brightly shining circle, gritting his teeth and clutching the blankets tightly in his hand. Ph1LzA quickly pressed one hand to Techno's forehead and the other onto his right arm, offering comfort while also trying to keep him from accidentally lashing out. "Don't let up!" the blonde told George when the brunet looked like he was going to pull away in alarm, "Keep the artifact on him until the infection's been cleaned out!"

"Infection?!" George exclaimed, eyes widening but he kept the medallion in place. He winced as Techno let out a strangled cry of pain, struggling in place. Ph1LzA bit his lip, a determined expression on his face as though he could cure the ailment through sheer willpower. The shimmering circle suddenly flashed, its aura growing and stretching over the slowly calming hybrid, settling in place and then fading.

"Alright, that should do it. You can put it back on now," Ph1LzA murmured, running fingers through Techno's hair carefully, "Thank you." George nodded, looping the cord back over his head. "Ship full of Cultists with supplies from the Brinelands; it was only a matter of time before one or more of us got infected by the Herobrine virus, at least one of the Viral War era strains," Ph1LzA explained quietly as Techno calmed and sighed, drifting into a more peaceful rest. "Our immunity level has been dropping steadily since the last time it was updated and we haven't had another refresh." He pointed at the medallion. "Likely because Dream hasn't been able to get a moment's peace to sing to the gold network while on the run, and held hostage, and tortured, and abducted by Cultists, and assaulted by someone on the journey repeatedly..." Ph1LzA sat back, ramrod straight and glowering at something distant past George's shoulder, face dark with restrained anger. "Dadza's going to be kicking a lot of asses for that." He huffed, then shook his head. "Point is, Dream couldn't sing, and Sky didn't have the amulet, so neither of them could refresh our immunity. When that ship blew up, it must have released the strain and it targeted Techno; he was closest to the center of it, after all."

"He's going to need more time than we can probably spare to heal," George surmised, shaking his head. "Between recovering from a viral infection and having to wait for the character model files to replace his arm, Techno won't be able to fight with us, not for a few days at least."

"Before we can fight, we need to plan what to do next," Ph1LzA pointed out firmly, "And I'll have to sit out, too. I'm not leavin' one of my boys alone while he's in this state."

"So, you guys have experience dealing with Herobrine," Sapnap said grimly, looking at Sky, Deadlox, and Setosorcerer where they sat around the kitchen table. He stood at the counter made of slabs, leaning back against it with his arms folded over his chest as he took in the older Avatars. "Any ideas on what His next move will be now that He's stolen Dream's body?"

"We'll have to assume Herobrine is pulling at Dream and Clay's collective pool of knowledge to make adjustments to His original goal; destroying life on Earth," Sky began carefully, "He'd know that Sky Army is splintered and lost a great deal of military strength. Our Loyalist Recruits are still trickling in, faster now that teleport commands are active, but there's chatter about Sky Capital being destroyed so they don't have anywhere else really to go but SkyHub."

Deadlox nodded and picked up the stream of thought, holding a mug of apple juice in his hands. Sapnap had bristled upon seeing the other Avatar pull it from their food stores - _'That's Dream's juice!'_ \- but bit back the anger and let it simmer under his skin, reminding himself to direct it to the real target: Herobrine. "Refugees and Recruits are probably packed to full in SkyHub's quarters, so it's going to move to the next largest city to drop some of them off and resupply," he explained, flicking his hand before himself to open a chat window. "I've got a lot of missed messages and TP requests that timed out. Which which which I'm just gonna ignore, mhm, until we sort our shit out here." He flicked the window closed and tapped his fingers on the table. "Dream's never been to SkyHub, so Herobrine won't know about the status of it and its supplies. But He **does** know it exists and He'll know it will move after Dream tore down Sky Capital, which is where SkyHub gets all of its supplies and personnel."

Sky reached out to try and get at the mug of juice, whining and grunting in frustration when Deadlox simply slid it just out of reach of his fingers. He shot the russet-haired Avatar a flat glare and pout before sitting back up with a huff. "Herobrine's first move when He had me was actually a two point attack, one on Earth and one here. On Earth, He lured Adam away from the rest of TeamCrafted to get control of his voice and make sure he couldn't counter mine," the Butter King told Sapnap and twirled a finger in the air. "But here in Minecraftia, He expanded his reach into Sky Territories by having His non-Infected Cultists carry diamond picks enchanted with Viral code into the Overworld and then place them in locations so the code could leech out of the picks into the chunks around them, infecting those lands and creating viral warp points for the Infected to spawn into from special portals."

"Except in the years you two were in exile, the Artifacts had weakened those points and cleansed a lot of the land through the butter network setup, with Sky Tower Alpha at the center to connect the whole thing to them," Seto pointed out and put a hand to his cheek in concern. "Oof, it's taken heavy damage and the connections between it and the rest of the network may have been destroyed by Dream in that Viral Wrath incident. Even if we put the Artifacts back, they won't be able to link up." He looked to Sky. "What if you wore the medallion and sang? At least get all of us here immunized."

Sky shook his head with a wince as Sapnap moved to gather more drinks and food, setting them out on the table for the trio and then standing back with his own mug of juice, sipping at it with narrow eyes watching them. "It's registered to Dream now. It'll reject me if I put it on and sang," the brunet replied, nodding his thanks to Sapnap as he pulled the mug of fresh milk closer to himself. "The instances where I sang and the medallion worked only happened because Dream was wearing it at the time; when I first immunized the Overworld, it was still partially registered to me, so it didn't need physical contact with me to work and it pulled from Dream's Virus to generate the aura, which registered it." He shrugged and looked up at the ravenet. "I left Sky Capital some time back to look for Dream myself and train him. He had a nightmare that shook him really badly and set off an anxiety attack, followed by Herobrine using that moment of vulnerability to try and launch a mental attack on him." Sapnap's expression hardened and Sky nodded in terse agreement that the Virus would **pay** for that. "I countered it by singing the rally call Sky Song, but I had to be in physical contact with the medallion _while_ Dream was wearing it for it to accept my voice and viral code as an alternative. Without Dream, it won't work, especially since I don't have the Sky Virus anymore, just this modified Dream Virus he injected into me as a replacement."

"So the first thing Herobrine's gonna do is send His flunkies into the Overworld with those viral pickaxes to re-infect the land and pen us in?" Sapnap asked and scowled. "Can you send Recruits to hold the line?"

"Not without picking where to hold it or we'll stretch our already shrunk resources thinner and lose more ground," Sky returned firmly. "We have limited able-bodied Recruits, our logistics teams are in shambles since many of them were based in Sky Capital, and the immunity level is at a point where infection is possible from those viral chunks and tools." He tilted his head curiously, an odd gleam in his eyes as he watched the ravenet. "What potential plans can you think up with those limitations?" he asked in interest.

Sapnap gave him an odd look, eyebrow raised, before lowering his chin to think. Those were some pretty bad numbers, but Herobrine also had low numbers since the Recruits had been taking out Cultists and without Him around they couldn't get more Infecteds. There were Cultist spies among the Recruits, Deadlox said so, so it's a good bet that they'd see where SkyHub was moving and report it to Herobrine. Would SkyHub be a good target for Herobrine to focus His forces on?

"Sky Capital was destroyed; that's where the command chain for the whole army sat, so that's gone. Sky Tower Alpha is broken, so it can't connect the Artifacts to the gold network. Those are two of the most important locations for Sky Army and Dream got pushed into wrecking them. What's left to show Sky Army's power and allow them to mount any sort of attack against Herobrine?" Sapnap began and pointed upwards. "SkyHub Orbital Fortress. Herobrine's going to want to bring that down to destroy the last of your resistance. We should focus the Recruits on holding back the battle line between Herobrine's forces and SkyHub. That should buy us breathing room to figure out a counter to His next step."

"Good tactic, but there's another reason why Herobrine will want to target SkyHub," Sky told him with a nod. Deadlox and Seto both looked at him in alarm.

"That's supposed to be a secret to everyone but the TeamCrafted Avatars and you want to tell these guys?!" Seto exclaimed incredulously. The brunet sat back in his chair and shrugged.

"Considering Dream's taken over my role here, why not? Dream Team's gonna have to step up, the least I can do is clean up the last of my mistakes so they can start fresh," he replied and looked up at Sapnap's suspicious glare. "The other reason why Herobrine wants access to SkyHub is that's where we keep a machine called the Singularity Pulse Point Portal," he told the ravenet seriously, "It's a device that links to a matching portal on Earth. A certain song has to be sung to it in order to activate it, but if it opens from this side, Herobrine can cross over to Earth."

"Earth?" Sapnap echoed, "You keep mentioning that server but..."

"It's not a Minecraft server, not like SMPEarth," Deadlox pointed out, "It's the world where all of our Players live, with their own rules and physics for life. They're set on Hardcore Mode all the time."

"And we don't want Herobrine going to this Earth because..?" the ravenet asked, gesturing for someone to fill in the blanks for him.

"Because to activate The Convergence, Herobrine needs to make sure He has full access to the soul-link's power and no other voice capable of countering Him free in the world, because Adam being rescued from Him and free to sing the restoration song was how The Convergence song kept being interrupted and He's learned from that," Sky replied grimly. "Dream's Player lives on Earth; if Herobrine gets to the Portal and opens it to cross over, He's going to hunt down Clay to make sure he won't be able to sing." The brunet sighed at the stunned silence Sapnap fell into, rubbing at his forehead and wincing again. "Feel so warm.. is anyone else feeling hot?" he muttered quietly.

\---

Kothra poured over the notes written in his book, comparing them with documents that were brought in from various agents running up to him and then running off again. He walked down to the foyer of the castle to meet with several more scouts coming in from the Overworld, the first wave of viral pickaxes sent out with them to create a foothold on the mainland. Stacy had been among them, and she hopped out of the group to fall into step beside him with a cheerful greeting.

"We're _baaaack_ ~! The first batch of pickaxes were planted and you're not gonna believe this, but I _think_ Minecraftia's trying to fight back against us. As soon as we started putting down picks, structures started forming around them!" she exclaimed with fever-bright eyes and a wide smile. She threw her arms up and out. "Like, _whoooosh_! Dungeons out of nothing!" Kothra eyed her warily.

"Dungeons spawning around the pickaxe warp points? Sounds troublesome," he remarked coolly, scribbling out a note about it in his book. "We'll have to report that to Lord Herobrine." He cringed slightly at the expected gasping squeal of excitement from the scout beside him. " _Must_ you do that every time I mention Him?"

"Yes!" Stacy replied and laughed, "I'm totally allowed to make happy squeals because we have Dream as Herobrine! My joy is valid and nothing's gonna cancel it~!" She held her hands up as though to measure the height of a block or item. "I'll admit, I sort of thought he'd appear in Minecraftia as a short lil plush version of that white blob on his skin in the upper servers. Still would've gotten him for Herobrine but it'd be tough to take Him seriously when looking like something you can kick across the map." Kothra stared at her incredulously, mouth open like he wanted to say something but lost the words at some point. Stacy nodded at him. "I know, right? We're super lucky he ended up looking hot, though why Minecraftia rolled him back to his E-boy skin, I have no idea. Guess it needed something to start as a base for translating the green boi skin?"

"Sometimes I wish I understood half the things you say to me. Some days, I'm glad I don't," the spymaster sighed, making his way towards one of the specialized rooms in the castle. "Come on. I've gathered information from the spies at Sky Capital that were left behind when we made our way back here. We need to report it and your discovery about the dungeons to Lord Herobrine at the smithy." Stacy squealed again and Kothra just rolled his eyes with another sigh.

_[Listening for key words......]_

Herobrine watched the blacksmiths assemble piles of enchanted armor and weapons for the Cultists carrying the viral pickaxes. He sat on the banister overlooking the floor where they all worked, sifting through information and memories He pulled from within. Something was a bit off, too many simultaneous files with parallel times but holding garbled data; what were they?

Kothra entered the smithing room, book open in his hands, while Stacy bounced along beside him cheerfully. " _Hiii~_ , Lord Herobrine!" the scout greeted, "Chillin' like a villain?" Herobrine gave her a lidded stare before turning His gaze to Kothra. The spymaster rolled his eyes and shrugged, hands lifted in resigned surrender. "Okay, so like you know how we got sent out to the Overworld to stick your special pickaxes all over to expand the Brinelands and get you deeper into Sky Territories? Totally sounds like a new ship fic, by the way, just sayin', but ANYWAY!" Stacy winked at the Viral Avatar, "Minecraftia spawned dungeons around them! The really fancy ones from the spin-off game! We're gonna need some better equips so I figured we could use these new dungeons to farm for Dungeons stuff! Is that a great idea or what?"

"What," Herobrine replied flatly, then waved a hand dismissively, an irritated look on His face. "Ugh, yes, go. Send a combat unit into one of these dungeons and have them clear it to gather any potentially useful equipment. Sky Army and Dream's little friends are using similar and gained heart gauges to protect their health so we may as well do the same to even the battlefield," He ordered, "Anything else?"

"Our spies have confirmed SkyHub is on the move, heading for the city of Grindstone," Kothra reported, reading off the words in his book before looking up. "It's the second largest city in Sky Territories, located southwest of the ruins of Sky Capital, primary industry is acting as a mass experience farm with multiple grinders and spawners, sitting atop a stronghold with an End Portal. What are your orders for this development?"

At that, Herobrine flashed a wide grin, teeth bared in the smile as He spun around to hop off the banister. "Excellent news! Well then, let's all visit those experience farms and collect on those riches before Sky Army does," He purred. "Send the Anarchics forward with the picks to spread my power towards the city." Stacy saluted him and scampered off to deliver the orders. Herobrine watched her go, then chuckled, tapping fingertips together gleefully. "And then send the Infected into the city once I've opened the portals," He went on, gesturing with His hands in flashy showman style, "so the population gets added to our ranks. By the time Sky and his friends arrive, we'll have the entire city ready to wage war! I'll show them **no mercy**!"

_[Listening for key words......]_


	34. 3. Arson

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Herobrine plans His attack on the xp farming city of Grindstone while Sapnap and George sort out what steps to take in order to get close to Him and restore Dream's Core File. Meanwhile, the young Avatars TommyInnit, Tubbo_, and Ranboo pay a visit to the city for levels and are swept up in the flames of war...

3\. Arson

~Grindstone

Grindstone; a walled city with mob spawners, grinders and droppers towering over the tops of shops and houses, brilliantly lit below and above the constructs. Hundreds of Avatars crowded the establishments on any given day, eager to make use of the numerous experience farms to stock up on levels quickly. While Recruits got priority for getting into the farms early, there were still plenty of them spread out over the massive city for Free Avatars to take advantage of easy leveling.

It was for these levels and potential tons of loot that brought a trio of young Avatars to the city on a grand adventure, or so the 'leader' of the group claimed.

"I thought we agreed that **I** would be the one in charge," TommyInnit complained as his best friend Tubbo_ grinned up at the guards stationed at one of the city entrances.

"Technically, this trip was Tubbo's idea, so he's leading," Ranboo, a Mob-Type Avatar who often claimed to be half-Enderman and half something he couldn't recall, pointed out with a pleasant smile, waving at the guard in passing as they were allowed into the city.

"You're only here because you're tall and it makes the authorities think you're an adult," Tommy told him flatly before turning back to Tubbo_, "No, seriously, **I'm** the big man, I should be in charge! It's expected!"

"You're also broke and it costs emeralds to use the Stronghold Ender Farm," the brunet told him with an impish expression, eyes squinting nearly closed with how wide he smiled at the blonde.

"Oohhh," Ranboo trailed off, shoulders raising as an uncertain expression flickered over his face, "we're, uh, we're picking on Endermen today, huh?"

"Yep!"

"Oh! ..Well, that's fine.. I guess."

\---

A cluster of red-cloaked Cultists studied the city from a copse of trees on a hill several hundred blocks away. They watched the steady flow of Avatars going in and out of the city, fingers pressed to zoom keys on screens floating around them. One looked up, watching a distant lump in the sky that had to be SkyHub on its way to the city.

"Incoming," the scout reported. "Looks like we've got a day or so before what's left of Sky Army's command shows up." The other Cultists laughed and chuckled to themselves, small smiles on their faces.

"They're not gonna stand a chance," another mused with an amused huff, getting up from her seat and swinging a diamond pickaxe wrapped in sparking blue energy onto her shoulder. "I'm gonna go place this down for Lord Herobrine. You guys still have the other ones, right?" A few nods and she nodded back before walking away from the view point, looking for a decent clearing she had marked out for the pickaxe. While many Viral pickaxes, when placed, caused Minecraftia to generate a new dungeon around it, some of them didn't cause that reaction. No one knew why or how the world sentience decided which picks got sealed and which didn't, but all the same they were placed and created the warp point that Herobrine could use to move freely in the Overworld, spreading His influence further and deeper into the world.

The scout twirled the pickaxe, then slammed the tip of its head into the grass. Rather than break the block, the viral code hooked into it, anchored the pickaxe in place like a fixture, and sent the energy flashing down onto the block and the surrounding grassland. The scout stepped back a few paces, watching in fascination as bright blue light the color of diamond spread out and sank into the land. No dungeon sprang up, the biome didn't shudder or shake, so that was a good sign.

The air seemed to split over the pickaxe, a thin line of glowing blue slicing into reality. It opened, shining diamond blue light, like a portal without surrounding blocks to contain it. The scout's eyes widened in surprise before quickly snapping to attention and bowing sharply at the waist in respect.

_[Listening for keywords.....]_

A short, lithe figure emerged from within the split in reality, dressed in shades of default blue and black, with glowing white eyes, dirty blonde hair, and a viciously wide grin. "And now the Overworld should tremble to feel me on its surface once more," Herobrine purred darkly, leaping gracefully out of the portal to land on the grass. He stretched His arms upward, hands spread open as though to feel the sunlight on as much skin as possible. After a moment, He lowered His arms and looked to the still bowing scout. "At ease. Report on the status of the city," He ordered, walking forward to join the scout. She fell into step, leading Him up the hill to the viewpoint.

"We've been observing the city since you made the declaration for it to be our next target. Occupation is near capacity at almost all times but the flow of foot traffic has been growing lighter since wartime commands were activated. Teleportation via set home points have increased, according to our internal agents," she reported swiftly and raised a hand to alert the other scouts.

They noticed her and Herobrine, abruptly standing at attention and saluting. At a gesture, He gave a silent command for them to relax and stood by them to look at the city himself, then SkyHub in the distance. "What's the status on SkyHub?" He asked, touching fingers to His own zoom button to see it better.

"From what the spies said, it's burdened down, max capacity on refugees and the rest of the High Council," another scout reported, looking up at the distant build himself. "When Dream tore down Sky Capital, there were hundreds of casualties; some of the population escaped his notice by going into underground bunkers before his summons could get to them, the essentials were evacuated to SkyHub, which took minimal damage from Dream's Viral state. The build is moving slow, and likely has few Recruits in combat condition on board."

"If we can get through its defenses, we can take it down," another scout agreed with a wide smile, excitement dancing in her eyes, "The last line of defense for Sky Army, their last bastion of power; we destroy that, we gain control of the Overworld, and all of Minecraftia with it!"

"First, we take the city," Herobrine pointed out and focused His attention to it, pulling at the pool of knowledge at His command. There was a faint feeling of a struggle, half-hearted, more of a token resistance really, and He smiled a little, taking pleasure in crushing it under His heel before taking what He wanted. "Who has access to an Ender Chest?" He asked the scouts.

_[Listening for key words.]_

\---

~Dream Team, Birch Forest Location

George removed the last bottle of potion from the brewing stand and carefully worked a cork into it, using the motion as an indicator for how much he was ignoring Sapnap standing by the stairs leading up from the underground workshop. He set the bottle into a chest with several others all carefully packed in with soft cloths stuffed into spaces to act as buffers. Something he and many other Avatars in Minecraftia had learned since Dungeons began mixing into their world was different ways of interacting with items and blocks if they didn't use the programmed GUI screens or native mechanics.

In this case, rather than follow through with breaking the chest to pick it up -as was normal for Minecraftia-, George hugged it to his body and lifted it with a grunt, listening to the jostle of bottles as he carefully began to move and take it to the stairs. Sapnap rolled his eyes and sighed.

"George, can you please stop giving me the silent treatment? Let me carry that for you," he pleaded and offered in the same breath. George tightened his grip on the chest, shooting the taller Avatar an unamused look as he started up the steps carefully. Sapnap followed him up, hands spread out to his sides just in case the brunet fell. They made it safely upstairs, where the Avatars they brought home with them waited for the potions.

George set the chest down on the table and opened it. "Everyone take a bottle to heal whatever hearts you need restored, then tap the icon in the corner of the item screen so it can refill itself," he told the tired group sitting or lying where they could in the den after spending the night. "Dungeons potions aren't as potent as Vanilla, but they'll keep refilling every minute or so."

Murmurs of thanks sounded around the room as the bottles were passed around and George headed for the kitchen to get breakfast, Sapnap following after him hurriedly.

"George, talk to me! We're about to go to Grindstone to build up levels and hold the city against the Cultists and find a way to get Dream back, but how are we gonna do that if you're sulking and not talking to me?!" he exclaimed in irritation after shutting the doors to the kitchen for privacy.

" _That!_ That is why I'm not talking to you!" George snapped, whirling around on one heel to gesture irritably at the ravenet. "You didn't talk to **me** first!" He waved past Sapnap, indicating the Avatars beyond the doors. "You made plans and strategies with Sky and the others without even waiting for me to give input!" he went on, face flushed red. "I might be shorter than you but that doesn't take away the fact I'm still the oldest of us! It's **not** right to cut me out of any talks that could involve Dream; I might not be his _childhood_ friend like you but I'm **still** his friend!"

He stood there, breathing hard and feeling hot and struggling to hold in tears and the want to scream louder if not for the fact that Techno was still resting in Dream's room and recovering from infection. Sapnap stood there, stunned and wide-eyed at his outburst. George rubbed at his eyes, pushing his glasses up onto his head and turning away to open a chest for something to eat. His stomach clenched painfully and he didn't know if it was from hunger or frustration. Blindly, he grabbed the first thing his hand touched and pulled it out. A green apple sat in his hand and George's face crumpled, free hand pressing up across his eyes to hide them as he sobbed, tears running down his face.

Arms wrapped around him carefully, as though unsure if they'd be welcome, then tightened into a proper hug when George leaned into it, soft wails muffled by Sapnap's thick shirts. Fingers ran through his hair in slow, comforting strokes, lightly massaging at his scalp. Sapnap waited patiently until the other Avatar seemed to have cried himself out, then moved him to sit at the table before rummaging through the food stores and bringing out a bowl of chicken stew and a mug of water. He set them in front of George and quietly encouraged him to eat before grabbing a sandwich for himself and taking a seat to eat with him. He took small bites despite not being hungry, but it did the trick.

Rather than be impolite about refusing a meal while another person eats, George reluctantly ate spoonfuls of stew slowly, then at increasing speed. When the bowl was empty and George was halfway through the mug of water, Sapnap set the rest of the sandwich down and watched him. "You're right, I should have called a pause on the meeting and gotten you involved," he agreed, tapping his fingernails against the tabletop. "We're a team and we work best together when we have all our cards on the table to talk it out."

"So then talk," George told him bluntly, setting his mug down. "What did you guys plan and why?" Sapnap sighed and began laying out everything he could remember of his conversation with the Sky Army Avatars the previous day. As he spoke, George's eyes narrowed further and further, brows furrowing as he analyzed the words and facts in his own mind. "..So since SkyHub is on the way to Grindstone, we're gonna beat it there using another group teleport with Deadlox's command block and hold the city as the base of operations for Sky Army to fight against the Cultists while you and I try and figure out how Trois expects us to put Dream's Core File back into his body."

Sapnap blinked as George suddenly got to his feet, the chair clattering to the floor as he slammed both hands onto the table. "Evacuate Grindstone! The city is Herobrine's target!" he cried out, rushing to the kitchen doors and throwing them open, "Sky, Deadlox! Get everyone out of Grindstone!"

Both Anti-Viral Avatars halted their discussion to look at him in surprise. "What's going on? I've already issued the order for all available Recruits to get to Grindstone to hold the city," Sky told the other brunet.

"Call them back! And get SkyHub to stop before it reaches the city; have the Recruits and evacuees meet with it outside of the city," George told him in a rush and looked around at all the confused faces. "Grindstone is the current target. SkyHub had to leave Sky Capital cuz it was destroyed, right? And it's protocol for it to move to Grindstone in the event it can't stay at the capital. There's Cultist spies and Disillusioned mixed in with the Recruits," he explained quickly. "So _they'll_ know that protocol will take effect and where SkyHub will be. The Cultists are going to head straight for Grindstone to take the city and use it as a trap for SkyHub!"

BadBoyHalo let out a cry of recognition. "Ah! It's like when we booby trap the End Portal and use it as an ambush point for Dream in the Manhunts!" he said and turned to Deadlox. "It's a strategy we would use if we get Eyes of Ender at about the same time or before Dream does in the Minecraft Manhunts; most of us hunters start looking for the stronghold while one stays to distract Dream, then we set up a trap at the portal room and try to lure him into it." He smiled ruefully, shrugging. "He tends to find a way to wiggle out of it but that's Dream. Your Sky Army Recruits might not think in the way we do with sneak attacks and traps."

"But Herobrine would, because He's using Dream and Clay's tricks and memories of your traps against us," Deadlox agreed and swiped open a screen to type out new orders. "And here I thought Dream's destructive potential was only in Viral state; you coulda warned us he can fuck up our shit just being himself." Bad growled from his corner of the den, but couldn't manage much more than that to scold with, not when he was still drinking potion to repair what injuries were overlooked by the breakfast meals.

"Oh god, Grindstone," Wilbur suddenly gasped, one hand flying up to his mouth in shock. "Tubbo's been planning a trip there for days; he and Tommy and Ranboo left for the trip before we heard about Dream heading for Fundy's and had to go and meet him at Cliffvale." He swept open a chat window, typing rapidly. "I'm sending him a teleport request to come here." There was a moment or two of waiting before he slammed his fists onto the floating keyboard in frustration, shattering it into pixels that faded. "He denied it, the little shit!"

"We don't have much choice, then," George said evenly, looking around at the gathered Avatars. "We'll have to risk arrest and go to SkyHub once everyone fighting is as healed as can be. It's the most fortified place in Minecraftia right now, and soon it'll be the closest we can get to Herobrine." He reached up to the Soul Healer charm, clutching it in his hand and taking comfort in the soothing warmth of Dream's soul resting within it. "We'll be in position to get Dream back if we go there."

\---

~Grindstone

_[Listening for key words......]_

The guards at the gate stood at alert as a small group of five Avatars walked up to the city with iron weapons and cheerful chatter. One of them was moving confidently despite wearing a blue blindfold around his head, an iron hoe slung onto his shoulder as he held a loaf of bread in his free hand. The others were happy, chatty girls, one walking backwards at the lead of the group as she giggled at the gossip. She spared a moment to wave a greeting at the guards as they passed through the gate into the city.

They walked along the streets, moving with the flow of the crowds and pointing out the number of Recruits that teleported to already stationed Recruits from outside the city. They also pointed out shops and various grinder types, making plans on which to visit first and what items to keep or sell. As they talked, they drifted closer and closer to the edge of the street, then seamlessly flowed into an alley between the shops, wandering idly until they were nestled behind the buildings in the relatively dim spaces.

The blindfold was removed with a graceful pull on the ribbon ends, and Herobrine smiled at the perfectly executed roleplay. He returned the ribbon to one of the girls, who thanked Him and used it to retie her ponytail, then flicked His hand from the hoe to the Ender Chest, placing it down on the cobblestone path. One by one, the girls with Him opened the chest and took out a pair of viral pickaxes. Herobrine gestured out to the city.

"Place them where they won't be discovered right away or where the portals can flow into the streets. I'll activate them when you're all done and checked in," He told them. The girls saluted, then spread out in different directions. With that in progress, Herobrine took a seat on the chest itself and inhaled slowly, then exhaled, looking inward to study the strange files within Himself.

The fragment of Dream He had left in place to hold the soul-link open for His careful manipulations to pass through to the Player on the other side struggled, and He turned his attention to it. He slowly tore another layer of code from the fragment, smiling just as slowly as He imagined the pained scream that doing so likely would have pulled had Dream had any control of his voice. That should be suitable punishment for still trying to be defiant in that last little piece of him. How was it even able to act up? Everything that was Dream had been consumed, overwritten; this body and everything within was now Herobrine.

So what was making that little piece stubborn?

Messages began coming in, one after another, as the pickaxes were driven into different points around the city. Once the last pick was placed, Herobrine drew Himself up and slipped into the free-flowing data, seeking out each pick and wrenching open a portal over them, compressing data and writing code to solidify them, lashing coordinates in place to connect the portals to the pens where the Infected were being stored. He could hear them on the other side, groaning and scratching through iron bars in attempts to reach through the open portals in a hunt for non-Cultist Avatars.

He had opened three of the portals by the time an alarm was raised, Recruits moving to try and shut down the portals or hunt Him down and stop Him from opening more. He grinned, reaching through one portal and flipping a switch. Several pistons began firing, pulling away the iron bars and letting several dozen Infected run loose into the streets. Screams of terror and shock began to rise and He moved to the next pick, tearing open the portal in time to see a pair of Recruits holding up gold swords to Him, blades and limbs shaking as fear radiated from them.

"Oh, you've grown soft since I've been gone," Herobrine cooed, stepping down from the portal and reaching out to them both. "I wonder.. do you recognize this face? This voice?"

One Recruit looked confused as the other darted eyes over Him quickly and inhaled sharply, despair on his face. "Oh my god, _no_.. that's Dream, the Minecraft Manhunt guy..." He backed away, seeking out an escape.

"That's right, so you know there's no escaping me now," Herobrine said brightly. He gently placed fingertips onto the golden swords and pushed them down, smiling wistfully at how little resistance there was in Him lowering their weapons. _"~~Have you seen the Herobrine?"_ He began singing softly to them, pressure building as fog began to form from the free-flowing data around Him, _"Roams your world in the default skin?~~ Oo-oo-oo-oo-ooohh!"_

The Recruits wilted, hopelessness draining the light from their eyes as they slowed in their attempts to back away from Him. Herobrine noted how much faster their will drained compared to singing with Sky's voice; greater sphere of influence.. had more Players, more humans, given their emotional energy to Dream's Player?

 _"~~Though He was removed, He shall rise again!~~"_ He went on, trailing fingers up the Recruits' lowering arms, diamond blue energy sparking and spiraling around His hands. _"~~Watching you from a distant shore, He'll come back stronger than before.~~ Oo-oo-oo-oo-ooohh!"_ He smiled at the expressions of horror dawning on their faces as He spread His palms open over their chests, the viral code carried in through the energy and spreading into the shaking Avatars, sparking around their eyes and draining color and life from them. _"~~When the darkness comes, He will strike for sure.~~"_

When He left the little alley where the portal was wrenched open, two Infected Recruits joined the horde now flooding into the city, data fog swirling up around Grindstone to mask their movements while voices continued screaming out.

The sounds of stampeding crowds and panicked screaming filtered down into the waiting room for using the Enderman grind farm, Tubbo_ lifting his head to squint at the ceiling from his chair. He had angled his chair to one side, legs flung across TommyInnit's lap to annoy him while the golden blonde Avatar flopped back in his own chair, groaning in boredom.

"Is that.. normal for the city this time of day?" Ranboo asked, pulling a clock out of his pocket to check the time.

"Maybe they're having a special on zombie flesh and everyone's trying to sell their dead meat before the zombies catch on and withhold their drops to deny us easy money," Tubbo_ droned as he rested his open book on his chest.

"Tubbo, what the fuck?" Tommy asked incredulously, lifting his head and slumping back down in his chair to better face the other blond.

"Should we check what's going on?" Ranboo went on, getting up from his seat and heading for the ladder that would lead up to the storefront where Tubbo_ had paid for their turn at the farm. He climbed a few rungs before looking back down at the boys. "You're not coming?"

"I'm not getting a refund if we leave, so no," Tubbo_ replied and resumed reading.

With a sigh, Ranboo let his head drop in exasperation, then quickly lifted it, one hand flying up to put his crown back in place as it started slipping off his head. "Well, I'm going to check, just a little, and then I'll be right back," he told them as he started climbing again. The disturbing sounds were getting louder and he slowed in his climbing, wincing at the noise ringing in his ears. When he reached the trapdoor that covered the entrance to the waiting room below, Ranboo carefully pushed it up a little, peeking through the crack to blink at fog rolling through the shop and the streets beyond the open door and broken windows.

A diamond pickaxe was jammed into the floor nearby, the tip speared into the polished diorite, leaving cracks spidering out over the block. He blinked at it, pushing the trapdoor open a bit more to crawl out of the tunnel partway and take a closer look. Diamond blue light danced over it in bursts of energy, like little lightning bolts; Ranboo reached out to the handle to grab the tool, only to jerk his hand back and stare with wide eyes as a gleaming portal split the air over the tool, letting a figure hop out and look around.

"This should be the last one," the figure murmured, their voice familiar but strangely echoing. Ranboo searched through his memory, then tugged on his soul-link to his Player for help, the answer filtering down almost immediately.

"Dream?" he greeted questioningly and the figure twisted to look behind themselves in surprise. Okay, the face and voice seemed enough like Dream's, and he reacted to the name, but those clothes and eyes didn't seem at all like what Dream would have. "What's with the skin change?" Ranboo went on in confusion and looked at the portal. "How'd you make that portal? I don't think that's part of Vanilla Minecraft," he added.

"Ah, another of Dream's friends?" the figure remarked and smiled in a decidedly unfriendly way that made Ranboo shrink back into the tunnel. "No, no, come up here. I _insist_."

"Oh.. oh, alright. If you.. if you insist," the hybrid Enderman Avatar muttered weakly, climbing out of the tunnel and standing before the figure with Dream's face. He glanced worriedly at the trapdoor. "So.. what now?" he asked, jolting in place when the figure placed a hand against his arm, then gestured with his free hand at the glowing portal.

A small group of Avatars with glowing white eyes and horrifying expressions on their faces poured out of the portal, rushing out of the shop to join in the screaming and stampeding outside. One of them lingered, turning to stare at Ranboo with an empty expression on their cartoon-themed face before turning to shuffle out the door, arms reaching out to seek and grab.

"The Infected disregard any Avatar that bears my viral code," the figure with Dream's face said factually and gave a dark chuckle. "You're lucky to stand before Herobrine this day."

Ranboo felt a chill pass over him as he looked down at the most terrifying entity in Minecraftia. Herobrine smiled wider and flicked His hand to load a dark red cloak and diamond clasp in His grip.

"Anyone else down in there?"

In a few minutes, Herobrine stood on a hastily constructed tower with Ranboo, Tubbo_, and Tommy standing by Him, each one wearing a red cloak and diamond clasp and expressions of distaste or worry.

"What even do you want with us?" Tommy demanded, voice surprisingly steady despite the nervous sweat on his face. His hands clenched into fists and he stood closer to Tubbo_, the sandy blond Avatar looking all over with darting eyes as though to seek out some advantage they could take to escape.

"Collateral," Herobrine returned dismissively, smiling out at the buildings being set ablaze, the flames dancing high, sending plumes of thick black smoke and embers into the sky and further darkening it as evening drew close. "There's a little piece of Dream inside this body I've kept stable to maintain connection to his Player for power, but it likes to act like it has a fighting chance against me." He turned to the young Avatars and lazily circled a finger over them. "But he apparently has connections to more Avatars than just the ones he told me about when I was breaking his will. As long as I have you three close at hand, that piece of him will behave itself." His smile grew more vicious. "Might even say.. he'll _be a good boy for me_..."

Ranboo flinched at the sudden laughter from the viral entity. "Oh! That got him! Oh, what a delicious reaction! _Hahahahaha!_ " Herobrine exclaimed, hands cupping His own face as though to try and contain the wide smile on His face. "Yes, between the memories I have access to and you three, I have Dream fully under control, and soon enough, I'll have his Player's soul in my command as well. Millions of humans sending their emotional energy towards him, generating power for me; I'll have all I need to prove my superiority."

"Yeah, but that's not gonna get you very many Twitch Primes," Tubbo_ pointed out flatly, folding his arms over his chest. Herobrine merely shrugged and turned back to look down the tower at the streets filled with Infected. The city's population, whatever hadn't kept their heads on long enough to teleport out or escape the walls, now wandered in their converted status, searching for new victims. Hundreds of Avatars roamed Grindstone, glowing white eyes filling every street and alley.

An Ender Pearl hit the top of the tower and burst to reveal a Cultist standing up to salute the Viral Avatar. "Lord Herobrine, all city exits have been walled off with wood planks and the city's population is fully converted. Our numbers have swelled with Infected, Anarchic troops have passed through the portals with weapons and supplies, SkyHub will arrive in a few hours; what orders do you have for us?" the scout reported.

Herobrine hummed softly, looking around at the burning rooftops and towers. "Gather the string from the grinders and make as many white banners as possible," He began and gestured to the walls of the city. "I want to see white flags all around this city by dawn! Let SkyHub see them, see the buildings burning, the streets cluttered with the dead!" He declared to every Cultist in range as they scattered to carry out the order. "Use their own sense of duty against them!"

"You know, you _really_ fucked up, Herobrine," Tommy spoke up, grim expression on his face as Ranboo stood closer by him and fiddled with the cuffs of his suit nervously. "Dream's got a lot of friends and people he cares about, and lots more people who care about him. You took him, and I bet that's pissed off the lot of them." His eyes narrowed when Herobrine just smiled condescendingly at him. "They're gonna come for you, we're all gonna find a way to kick your ass, and we're gonna get Dream back."

"I'd welcome a challenge for once," Herobrine told him, leaning against the guardrail of the tower casually. "Taking this whole city was such an easy thing, a pawn that fell before a king." He gestured over Himself with a smug smile. "Sky Army has lost its edge, the bite it once had as a weapon against me in the Viral Wars. They're losing everything and not even the majority of their losses were done by my hand."

"You were dealing with Sky Army, you're _used_ to Sky Army," Tubbo_ pointed out, drawing himself up straighter, hiding his shaking under his cloak. "You've **never** faced the Avatars who love Dream."

"There's no difference to me. Sky or Dream, their followers are my puppets," Herobrine scoffed, waving a hand in dismissal. "I say the word, they obey. If I tell them to die, they'll eagerly leap to their doom. You three will be the same in the end. Sky Army's ambitions failed them and so will whatever Dream's groupies are called."

"Sky Army had a goal; that's what they fought for, that's what their Recruits died for, in the wars," Ranboo stated coldly. "They're soldiers, they're an army, they're **meant** to fight for a goal, and maybe that's why they failed this time. But that's not Dream, that's not his way.. and that's why **you** will be the one to fail. We're not fighting for a goal; we're fighting for a dream."

Herobrine smiled, a soft chuckle escaping Him as He turned away to look up at the distant lump of gold and obsidian moving inexorably towards the city.

"Watch me turn your dream to ash."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pandora Dark was written as a way of practicing Tommy, and hopefully get a grasp of Tubbo and Ranboo by proxy.


End file.
